Albuquerque Birth Injury Attorneys

New Mexico’s Premier Medical Malpractice Law Firm, Available 24/7

If you or your child suffered harm during the labor or delivery process, you may have a claim for medical negligence against the team tasked with “caring” for you. Hospitals, nurses, and obstetricians are held to a certain standard of care, and when they fail to meet this standard, serious injuries—even death—can result.

Types of Birth Injuries

With modern medical technology, most neonatal birth injuries are entirely preventable. When a child shows signs of broken bones, nerve damage, and/or permanent brain injury, there is reason to believe medical malpractice was involved.

Some of the most common birth injuries include:

• Brachial plexus injuries (Erb's Palsy and Klumpke's Palsy)
• Horner Syndrome (drooping eyelid on side affected with brachial plexus injury)
• Broken bones
• Spinal injuries
• Brain injuries
• Cerebral palsy (CP)
• Facial paralysis

Lack of Oxygen to Baby During Pregnancy

Perhaps the most serious cause of birth injury is lack of oxygen to the brain. There are three main causes of brain injury during or immediately following delivery: reduced oxygen, trauma and reduced glucose. During a problematic delivery, two or more of these causes can occur and, oftentimes, if one occurs, it will trigger a secondary event that contributes to the brain injury.

During labor and delivery, anything that impedes the delivery of oxygen can cause injury to the brain. This includes problems with the mother's ability to supply oxygen to the placenta, as well as any problem with the proper functioning of the placenta, or even damage or compression to the umbilical cord during labor and delivery.

Excessive Pitocin can also be problematic, causing contractions to come less than two minutes apart and making it impossible for the body to replenish the oxygen supply. If Pitocin is causing the contractions to come on too strong and too frequently, someone on the healthcare team should shut off the Pitocin before putting the mother and child at risk of brain damage or death.

What Can Go Wrong During Labor and Delivery?

A number of things can go wrong during labor and delivery, the most common of which include:

• Miscalculating the size of the baby (large infants)
• Unnecessary delays in a C-Section delivery
• Use of excessive force during delivery
• Choosing the inappropriate delivery method
• Failure to promptly treat lack of oxygen, infection or bleeding
• Giving the wrong dose or type of oxytocin or misoprostol
• Using a vacuum extraction when a C-Section or forceps is necessary

If you or your child are currently suffering from undue injuries sustained at the hands of a negligent medical professional, we can help. Call our Albuquerque medical malpractice lawyer, James H. Wood, for expert legal advice from a Double Board Certified Civil Law Trial Attorney: (505) 906-6774.

How Can Birth Injuries Be Prevented?

While not every birth injury is preventable, there are certain measures that can be taken to reduce the likelihood of a neonatal birth injury occurring:

• Healthcare providers should ensure that they are properly identifying patients who may be at-risk for more complicated deliveries, and preparing for them accordingly
• As a patient, ask a lot of questions and be honest with your doctor about any concerns you may have, including asking them to share their plan for handling difficult deliveries
• During the birthing process be sure to share any concerns about any worrisome feelings; anything out of the ordinary could be an early warning sign of complication

Above all, doctors have a responsibility to protect their patients by doing their do-diligence to uncover complications prior to labor, and ensuring that they are prepared to handle any that may arise during labor. When this responsibility is shirked or not taken seriously, healthcare providers must be held responsible.

Call Our Albuquerque Birth Injury Lawyers for a Free Consultation

If you believe your child sustained a preventable birth injury due to medical negligence, we urge you to contact us at the James Wood Law. Our founding attorney is a Board Certified Trial Lawyer with over 20 years of experience in the field of medical malpractice. There is nothing more sacred in this world than the health and safety of you and your children, and we are here to advocate on behalf of those who have been unfairly stripped of this right.

Medical malpractice and neonatal birth injury lawsuits have a statute of limitations, so do not wait to contact our Albuquerque birth injury lawyers for help. We can be reached at (505) 906-6774 or by completing an online contact form here.