Birth Injuries

Cerebral palsy is a permanent and irreversible crippling condition affecting the brain and the central nervous system of an infant or a young child. Cerebral palsy can be caused by a number of ways including complications during pregnancy, the birth process, or the newborn period. CP is incurable and leaves the child disabled for life.

Erbs Palsy

Erbs Palsy or Brachial Plexus Palsy is caused by traumatic stretching of the infant's shoulder during birth. Erbs Palsy affects a bundle of five nerves known as the brachial plexus, which control muscles in the shoulder, arm, and hand. The result is paralysis in these muscles, diminished muscle control or no feeling in the arms or hands. Some sufferers of Erbs Palsy can move their arms, but have little control over the wrist and hand. Still others can use their hands well, but cannot use the shoulder or elbow.

When the initial shock wears off, parents want answers. They want to know what went wrong and if this tragedy could have been prevented.

Sometimes, an investigation will reveal that the outcome could not have been prevented. But there are other cases where an investigation shows that some form of malpractice has occurred and that the injury could have indeed been prevented.

Medical Malpractice

Medical malpractice is when a doctor or other health care professional deviates from the standard of care. This means that they did not provide the type of care that other members of the profession would have done under the same or similar circumstances.

The medical malpractice in birth injury cases could include any of the following scenarios:

• Failure to diagnose or properly manage pregnancy complications.
• Failure to respond to fetal distress in a timely manner.
• Failure to expedite the delivery of the fetus, resulting in irreversible brain damage to the baby.

If parents are not satisfied with the information they receive from their doctor surrounding their child's injury, an attorney may be able to help. Caring for a child with cerebral palsy is a huge economic burden. An attorney can provide access to the legal system to potentially help parents collect money from the negligent parties to help provide long term care for their child.