Brachial Plexus Injury Lawyers
Controlling the neurological functions in our hands, arms, and shoulders, our brachial plexus is a very important bundle of nerves extending out from our spinal cord. Injuries to the brachial plexus can cause Erb’s palsy, a permanent paralytic condition of the shoulder and arm.
Avoiding birth injuries such as brachial plexus injury may not always be possible, but every doctor, nurse, and midwife involved in the labor process should be aware of all of the risk factors, and be prepared to do everything possible in preventing this traumatic injury.
How Do Brachial Plexus Injuries Occur During Birth?
Occasionally, during delivery, a baby’s shoulders become stuck, called shoulder dystocia. This can occur due to a wide variety of possible circumstances, and is a rather common complication to the normal birthing process. Sometimes, the circumstances around birth injuries can’t be anticipated or avoided. Your medical malpractice attorney and brachial plexus injury lawyers will help you find the truth. Some of the circumstances which may have led to your child’s injury include:
- Failing to prevent the shoulder lodging in the first place, if possible
- Placing too much pressure on your child’s head during delivery
- Using vacuums improperly, or when it isn’t medically necessary
- Forceps being used improperly
- When the baby is born breech, and the doctor did not, or could not, prepare
How Can Brachial Plexus Injury Lawyers Know if there was Negligence?
If your child suffered brachial plexus injury during birth, there’s a possibility it was the result of medical malpractice. Scheduling a consultation with a qualified medical malpractice attorney can help you determine if medical malpractice was the root cause of your baby’s injuries. That’s not to say that a doctor has done anything on purpose, but that there were precautions that weren’t taken, when they should have been. Occasionally, these injuries are caused by the medical staff:
- Failing to note a child’s size in the uterus
- Failing to recognize unusual fetal positioning (breech, forward-facing, sideways, etc.)
- Failing to respond to changes to the mother’s or child’s condition during delivery
- Causing, or not responding appropriately to, an entrapped or compressed umbilical cord
- Misusing labor-inducing medications, or not ordering appropriate C-Sections
- Inadequately caring for the child immediately after birth
If any of these indicators were present when your child was injured, contact a Boston medical malpractice lawyer, and we can help you find compensation for medical expenses and emotional distress.
Contacting a Boston Medical Malpractice Lawyer
If you suspect that your child’s injuries were the result of negligence on the doctor’s part, contact our medical malpractice attorney as soon as possible. Our Boston medical malpractice lawyers are experienced brachial plexus injury lawyers, and we can help you.