Understandably, you may be completely distraught when your newborn is later diagnosed with something as serious as hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. You may have been completely overwhelmed during your labor and delivery process, so now you cannot pinpoint whether this was prompted by an unavoidable medical emergency or an easily preventable mistake. What you may be certain of, though, is that your infant will have to deal with lifelong health complications because of this unfairness. Well, if you are trying to discern what went wrong, please continue reading to confirm whether your baby’s hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy is due to a physician’s malpractice and how an experienced New York infant brain damage attorney at Mark L. Bodner, P.C., can help you understand what you should know as a parent about pursuing a legal claim.
What is important to know about hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy?
For starters, “hypoxic” means low oxygen, and “ischemic” means reduced blood flow. Therefore, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy describes a type of serious brain injury that occurs when a baby’s brain does not receive enough oxygen and blood flow around the time of birth. Since a baby’s brain is still developing, even a short period of oxygen deprivation can leave them vulnerable to lasting damage. Namely, this may lead to conditions like cerebral palsy, developmental delays, seizure disorders, cognitive impairments, and more.
Did medical malpractice cause my baby’s hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy?
There are signs that your attending physician can and should look out for to prevent your baby’s hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. Below are ways in which they might negligently ignore them during your pregnancy, labor, and delivery processes:
- A negligent physician may fail to monitor your baby’s heart rate during labor and delivery.
- A negligent physician may delay ordering an emergency C-section despite prolonged, distressed labor.
- A negligent physician may mismanage an umbilical cord compression, placenta abruption, uterine rupture, etc.
- A negligent physician may fail to identify and treat a serious maternal infection during your pregnancy.
To reiterate, emergent issues may have arisen during your labor and delivery that made your baby’s hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy impossible for your attending physician to stop. However, they still hold a duty to diagnose and address this serious health condition promptly. Namely, they should order cooling therapy within six hours after birth, to lower your baby’s body temperature and slow their brain injury after oxygen loss. The longer they wait, the less effective this therapy may be, which ultimately may be considered another form of medical negligence.
All of this to say, if you believe medical malpractice caused your baby’s long-term suffering, you may have a valid legal claim on your hands. Even still, you probably have more questions regarding this topic, and we would be happy to answer them for you. So please schedule an initial consultation with a skilled New York City birth injury attorney from Mark L. Bodner, P.C. We look forward to our conversation with you.