Complications during the labor and delivery process can injure your baby. Unfortunately too many children are born with irreversible lifelong injuries or disabilities that occur during the birthing process.

Defining Birth Injury

A common definition of a birth injury is a form of personal injury that occur when damage is inflicted on the mother or her baby during complicated or at-risk deliveries. Hospitals, doctors and nurses can make mistakes, like over-medicating the mother or using forceps incorrectly. These actions are a form of medical malpractice and can lead to permanent personal injury to your child.

Three Types of Birth Injuries You Should Know About in San Antonio

Birth injuries can be caused by even the slightest of mishaps since a newborn is so vulnerable. Many of these, like bruising, can heal quickly. Others can cause lasting and permanent damage that you and your child must deal with for the rest of his or her life. Three types of serious birth injury you should be familiar with are Cerebral Palsy, Brachial Plexus Palsy (including Erb’s Palsy and Klumpke’s Palsy) and Shoulder Dystocia.

Regardless of severity, any injury to a child that occurs during the birthing process is known as a birth injury and may be caused by doctors, nurses anesthesiologists or other hospital staff.

The causes of birth injuries are as varied as the types, but common causes include:

• Delay in ordering a cesarean section
• Failure to respond to bleeding
• Failure to respond to umbilical cord entrapment
• Failure to respond to fetal distress
• Misuse of vacuum extractors or forceps
• Poor care of newborn immediately following birth

If your newborn has suffered an injury during birth and you would like to know more about your legal rights, click here to fill out our free case evaluation form or call us anytime at 866-763-9001.