Syracuse Personal Injury Law Blog
For parents, the worries associated with impending parenthood begin long before their child is born. Unfortunately, birth injuries can occur at any time during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, or the postnatal period. One of the most serious birth injuries is hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a type of brain damage caused by a lack of oxygen or blood flow to the brain for an extended period of time. According to a Newborn Infant and Nursing Review article, HIE occurs in 1.5 to 2.5 of every 1,000 live births in developed countries. Surprisingly, despite advances in obstetric care, the rate of HIE has not decreased over the last few decades.
HIE occurs as a result of an event that deprives the newborn’s brain of oxygen or blood flow before, during, or after birth. When a baby’s developing brain is deprived of oxygen and blood, the cells rapidly decay and die. It is not always clear what event prevents oxygen or blood flow to the brain. However, there are a number of risk factors and potential causes to consider. Problems with blood flow to the placenta, preeclampsia, maternal diabetes with vascular disease, congenital fetal infections, drug or alcohol abuse, severe fetal anemia, heart disease, and lung malformations are all prenatal risk factors. Intrapartum risk factors include umbilical cord problems, placental abruption or uterine rupture, excessive placental bleeding, abnormal fetal position, such as breech position, prolonged late stages of labor, and very low blood pressure in the mother. Severe prematurity, severe lung or heart disease, serious infections, brain or skull trauma, very low blood pressure in the baby, and respiratory failure or cardiac arrest are all postnatal risk factors.
When doctors and nurses miss critical signs that the baby is in distress during delivery, this is considered medical malpractice. The actions or inactions of the medical team can deprive the baby of oxygen, causing profound brain damage. This would lead to the infant requiring extensive resuscitation before they could start breathing on their own, resulting in permanent brain damage that would limit their mental and physical abilities for the rest of their life. If you or your baby suffered injury as the result of medical malpractice, call our office today. At DeFrancisco & Falgiatano, our highly experienced medical malpractice attorneys may be able to help you collect the compensation you deserve. We help clients throughout Upstate New York, with offices in multiple convenient locations. Our extensive experience in the medical malpractice field is reflected in the results we have achieved for our clients.
Some children with HIE will have no health problems or only mild to moderate effects, whereas others will have severe and permanent disabilities such as developmental delay, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, or cognitive impairment, or may even die.
According to a study published in the Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing, nearly 60% of infants with HIE will die or have severe disabilities by the age of two. When the blood or oxygen supply to the brain is cut off, the rest of the body may suffer as well. This may impair the function of other organs, such as the heart, liver, and kidneys.
A neurologist will examine your baby to diagnose HIE. Your baby will undergo neuroimaging tests, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to look for signs of brain injury while being monitored by an electroencephalogram for seizures and signs of brain dysfunction.
HIE can occur for a variety of reasons, some of which are unknown. You must be able to prove that your healthcare professional’s actions or inactions caused or worsened your child’s HIE in order to file a medical malpractice lawsuit.
Medical malpractice and birth injury lawsuits are particularly challenging to litigate without an attorney. Due to the technical nature of medical care, expert testimony is usually required to determine whether the healthcare professional’s actions fell below the applicable standard of care. If you believe you can claim medical malpractice, you should contact Upstate New York’s experienced and knowledgeable medical malpractice attorneys at DeFrancisco & Falgiatano. We represent injured clients and their families throughout Upstate New York, including Syracuse, Rochester, Albany, Buffalo, Elmira, Binghamton, Auburn, Ithaca, Oswego, Norwich, Herkimer, Delhi, Cooperstown, Cortland, Lowville, Oneida, Watertown, Utica, Canandaigua, Wampsville, Lyons, and surrounding areas. Please call us at 833-200-2000 or contact us via our online form to discuss your case.