If your child was diagnosed with birth asphyxia, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), oxygen deprivation, or hypoxic encephalopathy after a difficult pregnancy, labor, or delivery, you may be asking whether the injury could have been prevented. Birth asphyxia happens when a baby does not get enough oxygen before, during, or immediately after delivery. When the lack of oxygen and blood flow injures the brain, the diagnosis may be hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, or HIE. In many cases, the real issue is not whether the complication existed at all, but whether the medical team recognized the warning signs, acted fast enough, and followed the accepted standard of care. When preventable mistakes delay treatment or delivery, families can be left facing years of medical appointments, therapy, uncertainty, and financial strain.
Our Dallas birth injury attorneys investigate birth asphyxia, HIE, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, oxygen deprivation, and hypoxic encephalopathy cases with one goal in mind: finding out what happened, why it happened, and whether a preventable breakdown in care changed your child’s future. A strong case is built on timing, fetal monitoring, nursing documentation, physician decision-making, neonatal records, and expert review. That is why these cases demand both legal experience and a deep understanding of obstetrics, labor and delivery nursing, newborn medicine, and long-term neurologic injury.
Our entire legal team is focused on one word: You. You are the most important part of our practice: you, your family, your suffering, your livelihood, and your needs. Let us put our passion for helping others to work for you.
How This Condition Can Become A Malpractice Case
Not every bad outcome indicates negligence. A birth injury claim becomes legally significant when the evidence shows that competent providers should have recognized the risk, responded differently, and avoided or reduced the harm. In birth asphyxia, HIE, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, oxygen deprivation, hypoxic encephalopathy cases, common negligence issues may include:
- ignoring fetal monitor strips
- failing to escalate to the obstetrician
- continuing labor when the baby is showing distress
- delaying emergency delivery
- failing to start therapeutic hypothermia quickly when indicated
Common Medical Issues Associated
These are some of the medical facts and red flags families often see in cases involving this type of injury:
- Birth asphyxia happens when a baby does not get enough oxygen before, during, or immediately after delivery. When the lack of oxygen and blood flow injures the brain, the diagnosis may be hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, or HIE.
- Common cause or risk factor: delayed response to fetal distress
- Common cause or risk factor: failure to act on non-reassuring fetal heart rate patterns
- Common cause or risk factor: umbilical cord compression or prolapse
- Common cause or risk factor: placental abruption
- Common cause or risk factor: uterine rupture
- Common cause or risk factor: prolonged labor
- Common cause or risk factor: failure to timely perform a C-section
- Possible sign after labor or delivery: low Apgar scores
- Possible sign after labor or delivery: need for resuscitation
- Possible sign after labor or delivery: seizures
- Possible sign after labor or delivery: abnormal cord blood gases
How These Injuries Can Affect A Child and Family
The consequences can range from a difficult NICU stay to lifelong disability. Depending on severity, families may face cerebral palsy, developmental delay, seizures, motor impairment, cognitive difficulties, and lifelong therapy needs. They may also face future costs for neurology care, therapy, adaptive equipment, home modifications, attendant care, special education support, and lost earning capacity. A successful case should tell the full story of the injury and the lifetime impact, not just the first hospital bill.
Frequently Asked Questions
What causes a birth injury?
Birth injuries can occur for a number of different reasons. In some cases the child’s head is too large to fit through the mother’s pelvis. Other times the placenta become detached prematurely or the umbilical cord is compressed or twisted. Also, when a physician uses forceps or a vacuum during a vaginal birth, injury to the brain can result. In many of these instances time is of the essence. The doctor is responsible for knowing when a cesarean section is necessary in order to avoid injury to the child.
There is no way to completely eliminate the risk of birth injury, but some risk factors that can lead to trouble during child birth are drawn out labor, atypical positioning of the baby, too much Pitocin given to the mother, larger than average sized baby, premature birth and the use of forceps or vacuum.
Expectant parents tend to anticipate a relatively smooth birth process and a healthy baby. In the majority of cases this will be the outcome. Sadly, there are some instances where birth injury and possible lasting effects will result. If you or a loved one has a child affected by a condition that was caused by birth injury and you believe it resulted from negligence on the part of the medical staff, we can offer a free assessment of your case. We have extensive knowledge in the areas of birth injuries and medical malpractice, and will be happy to advise you of your options moving forward.
What is birth injury malpractice?
Medical malpractice relates to birth injury in cases where the medical professional charged with you and your baby’s care fails to provide appropriate care during pregnancy, during the delivery process, or shortly after the child is born.
To better understand birth injuries and how they can be caused by medical and/or nursing mistakes, first you need to understand the concept of medical malpractice. The following will explain what medical malpractice means, statistics and some general tips for selecting the right doctor and avoiding medical mistakes.
A birth injury is an injury that can happen prior to birth, during the labor and delivery process, or in the neonatal or “newborn” period. Injuries that occur during the prenatal period can be attributed to untreated infection such as Group B Streptoccoccus, placental insufficiency or abruption, and preterm birth causing respiratory distress and brain hemorrhage.
Labor and delivery injuries can be caused from a health care provider failing to recognize fetal distress during labor signaling decreased oxygen being delivered to the baby’s brain resulting in injuries to brain structures responsible for movement, cognition, vision, swallowing, and coordination. Additional injuries that occur during labor and delivery can be related to CPD or “cephalo-pelvic disproportion” whereby the baby’s head is too large to fit through the mother’s pelvis during the birthing process.
Did you know?
Rasansky | McKenzie Law negotiated a settlement of more than $10 million on behalf of an infant who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy as a result of medical and nursing malpractice. We have also obtained numerous multi-million dollar settlements for children who suffered other types of birth injuries caused by medical malpractice.
What should I do if my child suffered a birth injury?
The first and most important issue to deal with after a birth injury is caring for the health of the baby and the mother. Get advice, treatment, and support from medical professionals you trust, and do not be afraid to get a second opinion. Also, be sure to take advantage of counseling and therapy options if you or your family needs help processing what happened.
After the health and well-being of your family is under control, you may wish to speak with a Dallas birth injury lawyer. A medical malpractice attorney can help you better understand what caused your baby’s injury, collect the evidence of the case, and enumerate your legal options if you choose to take action.
A birth injury is traumatic for the entire family – and one mistake in labor and delivery can lead to a lifetime of medical costs, nursing care, disability, and therapy. If you believe that your child’s injury was caused by negligence, you owe it to your family to ensure that the person or hospital responsible for your child’s injury pays for the consequences of their negligent actions. If someone else caused the injury, why should the financial burden be placed on your family?
Is my child entitled to compensation?
Typically, it is not the parent but the child who will be awarded compensation, as it was the child who was injured by the doctor’s negligence making the child entitled to compensation. If you win your birth injury claim/lawsuit against the doctor/hospital, compensation is usually delivered in the form of a trust. Keep in mind though that parents can sue for emotional distress—or if the mother was also injured because of the doctor’s behavior. If the child dies because of a doctor’s negligence, the compensation goes to the parents.
What are the main types of birth injuries?
There are many types of injuries that can occur during pregnancy and delivery, ranging from minor to severe. Among the most common types of birth injuries are:
- Cerebral palsy.
- Brachial plexus injuries (Erb’s palsy, Klumpke’s palsy).
- Infections (B strep, meningitis).
- Baby brain damage.
- Bruising and bleeding beneath the cranial bones.
- Bone fractures and nerve damage (often to the upper arm).
- Shoulder dystocia.
- Spina bifida.
- Folic acid deficiency, anemia.
- Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension.
- Blood flow and/or oxygen being cut off to the baby during delivery (causing anoxic brain injury, hypoxia, birth asphyxia, or perinatal asphyxia).
- Wrongful death.
Will my child's birth injury go away?
Birth injuries do not always lead to serious and lasting harm to the child. Many of them will heal on their own with no medical intervention. In some incidences, however, birth injuries result in chronic conditions such as cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, or Klumpke’s palsy.
Of these, cerebral palsy is probably the most concerning, as the others do sometimes improve or resolve. Cerebral palsy can affect coordination, reflexes, gait, muscle tone, and mental capabilities. In a study among six countries, the incidence of cerebral palsy was estimated to be between 2.12 – 2.45 cases per 1000 births.
If you’re concerned whether or not your child’s injuries will improve, the best course of action is to speak to your pediatrician. If you’d like to have an attorney look into the facts of your case, call us at (214) 651-6100.
Why Families Contact A Dallas Birth Asphyxia Lawyer
Families usually reach out because something about the labor, delivery, or newborn care did not feel right. There may have been a sudden emergency, a long delay before the doctor arrived, confusing explanations from the hospital, or a diagnosis that came with no clear answers. A lawyer handling birth asphyxia, HIE, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, oxygen deprivation, hypoxic encephalopathy litigation can analyze the timeline, identify what the medical team knew and when they knew it, and determine whether earlier action likely would have changed the outcome. If negligence played a role, a claim may seek compensation for past and future medical care, therapies, impairment, pain and suffering, and other legally recoverable damages.
Talk to a Dallas birth asphyxia attorney. If your child was diagnosed after a traumatic delivery or unexplained NICU course, our firm can review the labor, delivery, and newborn records to determine whether preventable mistakes may have caused the injury.
