California Medical Malpractice Law Blog

A new birth injury study has revealed that cesarean sections (c-sections) may put small, premature infants at a 30 percent higher risk for breathing problems than those born vaginally. The study to be presented at a meeting of the Society for Maternal-Fetal medicine found that “respiratory distress syndrome,” a condition that affects newborns and can lead to lifelong breathing difficulties and brain damage occurred more frequently in those babies born prematurely by c-sections.

Many physician groups are seeking to curb the rising frequency with which c-sections are performed. Between 2002 and 2009, the percentage of c-section deliveries rose from 27% to 34% of all births.

In many instances, a c-section may be necessary, such as when the infant is in fetal distress and may suffer from a lack of oxygen. The failure of health professionals to act quickly to restore oxygen flow and perform an immediate c-section may constitute medical malpractice in these instances. Alternatively, performing unnecessary c-sections has shown to raise the possibility of birth trauma. The recent birth trauma study looked specifically at pre-term c-sections and noted that while the incidence of brain bleeds, seizure and sepsis remained the same, increases were shown in the areas of respiratory distress.

As stated by a representative from the March of Dimes, "This particular study shows that for infants that are premature and small-for-gestational-age, which tend to be thought of as rather fragile infants, the cesarean delivery doesn't offer any protection from the adverse outcomes."

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A recent birth injury research paper concluded that when a woman is carrying a large baby, inducing labor should be strongly considered to avoid birth trauma. According to the study, large-for-date babies are more likely to experience a birth injury if nature is allowed to takes its course instead of inducing labor.

In fact, having a large baby is one of the risk factors for a baby being born shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia occurs when a baby's shoulder becomes stuck behind the mother's pelvic bone and if not taken care of correctly, can lead to a brachial plexus injury such as Erb's Palsy or a brain injury ( asphyxia or hypoxia) due to lack of oxygen or blood flow. In some severe cases a wrongful death may occur. If you believe your child has suffered a birth injury as the result of medical negligence, it is important to speak to an experienced California birth injury attorney immediately to answer your birth injury questions and determine your next steps.

Here, the research found that for fetus’ estimated sonigraphically to be above the 95th percentile for weight, adverse events such as shoulder dystocia were three times more like to occur than if labor was induced. This study confirmed earlier studies suggesting that inducing labor may lower birth was and decrease the chance for should dystocia, brachial plexus injury and death.

This study will bolster what is already well established in the medical community, i.e. that delivering a very large baby or a mother with a small pelvic opening may lead to this birth injury. Where a doctor fails to take action to prevent this birth injury from occurring, he or she may be liable for medical malpractice and be responsible for paying damages to cover a lifetime of care.

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According to a new research medical error study published by Public Citizen, many states fail to adequately discipline their doctors even after they have been found liable of committing serious medical mistakes, including medical malpractice. The state with the worst record of doctor discipline is Minnesota, further complicated by the fact that members of the public don’t have access to critical background information concerning a physician's past history of mistakes. Even states such as California, whose failure to discipline doctors has been well documented, provides a database available to the public to determine whether a particular doctor has been found liable for medical malpractice.

The Medical Board of California’s Physician License Look-up provides critical information such as:

• If a physician has been discipline or accused of wrongdoing by the board
• If a physician’s practice has been temporarily restricted or suspended pursuant to a court order, and
• If a physician has been disciplined by a medical board of another state or federal government agency

As a result when a medical error occurs, such as an avoidable delay in delivery that causes a birth injury, and a doctor is disciplined, the state board should provide a record of that malpractice. If you have questions concerning your physician, or believe you or a loved one may have been harmed by medical malpractice, consulting with an experienced California medical malpractice attorney promptly is important to ensure your rights are protected.

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UC Davis Children’s Hospital has reached a milestone in its effort to help children born after birth affixia – the lack of oxygen at or near birth. After first instituting “cooling therapy” in 2009 as a technique to help babies suffering from birth injuries, Children’s Hospital has now successfully helped more than 50 infants with this method.

Cooling therapy is a technique used that is designed to reduce long-term neurological damage following birth asphyxia – also known as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) – which occurs when the the flow of oxygen to a baby’s brain is reduced or cut off completely. This may occur for a variety of reasons, including medical malpractice. If physicians or other staff fail to act quickly enough to restore the flow of oxygen, such as by performing an emergency c-section, they may be found responsible for causing the birth trauma and liable for damages. As the result of birth asphyxia or HIE, a baby may have severe and long-term neurological damage.

Brain cooling therapy works by reducing an infants core body temperature which then slows secondary damage to healthy cells in the brain after an initial brain trauma. By beginning to cool infants as quickly as possible after an injury, physicians at Davis have been able to improve the lives of infants born with brain injuries by lessening the degree of developmental delays they experience.

Optimally, cooling therapy is given within the first 6 to 14 hours of life to infants who show signs of fetal distress, such as an Apgar score below 5, an altered state of consciousness and require artificial ventilation.

As stated by one doctor, it is hoped that “induced hypothermia will result in fewer infants with devastating lifelong disabilities.”

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