Brain Injury Birth Malpractice Lawyer

San Antonio Birth Injury Lawyer and Texas Medical Malpractice Attorney Michael Grossman on Brain Injuries Caused at Birth

If your child has experienced a traumatic brain injury as a result of a medical professional’s negligent behavior, you likely have merit in bringing a medical malpractice lawsuit against the liable doctor, obstetrician, or other medical professional. In so doing, you could stand to receive compensation for your incurred damages, which can include compensation for both past and future medical bills.

As traumatic brain injuries caused at birth can lead to severe, life-altering, detrimental effects that will affect a child for the rest of their lives, often requiring costly medical care and attention, seeking such compensation can help relieve the financial stress often experienced by families in these difficult situations. San Antonio birth injury attorney Michael Grossman offers the following informative article to clarify what constitutes brain injuries caused during birth, and the legal options that an aggrieved party can pursue in order to seek compensation for their child’s birth injury.

Brain Injuries Caused at Birth

Non-severe brain injuries can occur during a regular birthing process due to the baby’s still-forming bones. Since the child must experience an inherently traumatic event in the birthing process, i.e. they are pushed through a narrow opening, certain injuries often just occur, or can be considered normal. For example, newborn babies can often have facial bruising or cranial bruising, or may have a “pointy” head due to their malleable bones. However, the baby’s flexible skull bones can also pose a hazard when a medical professional acts negligently during the birthing process. If too much force is applied, the child can suffer a brain injury, which can range from serious to severe, and such an injury can result in a life-long condition that negatively affects the child’s well-being. If a parent believes that their child suffered a brain injury caused at birth as a result of the negligence of a doctor, obstetrician, or other medical professional involved in the delivery process, then the parent can seek compensation for their child’s injuries through a medical malpractice lawsuit. With 20 years of experience in personal injury law, San Antonio birth injury lawyer Michael Grossman can assist you in seeking compensation that can be put toward mounting medical bills you’ve likely incurred as a result of medical malpractice.

Skull Compression Birth Injuries

Compression of the skull’s bone into brain matter can occur in deliveries because of the skull’s malleability in a newborn. Such pressure on the brain can result in many different types of injuries, ranging from developmental delays, to retardation, to neural and sensory development issues, to muscle structure and ability problems, to speech and vision issues, to circulatory system problems. Specific brain injuries caused at birth by skull compression can include the following:

• Epidural Hemorrhage / Hematoma
  An epidural hemorrhage, or a hematoma, is a serious form of a traumatic brain injury where a hematoma, i.e. a blood clot, happens between the skull and the brain matter, resulting in pressure building on the part of the brain where the hematoma resides. Depending on the amount of pressure and the location of the hematoma, permanent damage can occur to the functions that that specific area of the brain controls. Such hematomas can occur from a blunt impact, or from intracranial bleeding. Symptoms of epidural hemorrhage may not be seen for up to 24 hours after birth, with a baby being lucid as pressure builds within the brain, only to lose consciousness once the pressure becomes too great. This specific type of brain injury caused at birth often points to medical malpractice since the degree of trauma required to cause such an injury is often great.
  
  
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• Subgaleal Hemorrhage / Hematoma
  A subgaleal hemorrhage, or a hematoma, occurs when bleeding happens between the scalp and the skull. Subgaleal hemorrhages often appear from 24 to 48 hours after birth, although more severe instances can appear sooner. Since the space between the scalp and the skull can contain 50% of a newborn’s blood supply, medical professionals must closely monitor the hematoma’s growth. Without proper monitoring, the hematoma can lead to shock, or even the death of the child. Furthermore, subgaleal hematomas can lead to hyperbilirubinemia, which can result in severe brain injury, retardation, or death. Although a subgaleal hemorrhage by itself is not grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit for a birth injury, any detrimental conditions that occur as a result of the hematoma are legally actionable. In such instances, it’s important to have expert help in assessing whether or not your case has merit. The Texas birth injury law firm of Grossman Law Offices has contacts with medical professionals that can help determine such issues.
  
  
• Cephalohematoma
  Small blood clots known as cephalohematomas can occur between the skull and the scalp of a newborn. Such clots can occur due to a prolonged labor process or when a vacuum is used to pull a newborn’s head through the birth canal. In many instances, cephalohematomas are not to be worried about; however, severe cases of cephalohematomas can result in jaundice, hypotension, anemia, or can be a sign of a skull fracture and infection.
  
  
• Caput Succedaneum
  Caput succedaneum is a scientific term for, essentially, a bump on the head. Such bumps can be large knots that appear on a newborn’s scalp, but seldom do more damage than a headache to a newborn. These types of birth injuries often treat themselves and clear up within a few days.

Hydrocephalus

Hydrocephalus is the accumulation of spinal fluid that occurs between the brain and the skull. Symptoms of hydrocephalus include an abnormally large head, or a quickly growing head, a rounded scalp soft spot, downward-looking eyes, or seizures. Hydrocephalus can be treated by surgery to remove the spinal fluid and a shunt can be inserted into the skull to assist in regulation cranial pressure.

While hydrocephalus is not a birth injury, early detection and fast treatment is the key to preventing further injuries from occurring due to building cranial pressure or infection. Medical professionals like doctors and obstetricians who fail to notice the signs of hydrocephalus or work quickly to address the issue may cause serious problems for the child, such as developmental delays, paralysis, or organ problems or organ failures. These resultant injuries that can occur when hydrocephalus is not correctly or quickly treated are birth injuries for which a negligent medical professional can be held accountable for through a Texas medical malpractice lawsuit. In such instances, San Antonio birth injury attorney Michael Grossman and his team at Grossman Law Offices can help you in seeking compensation for the injuries that occurred to your child due to the negligence of a doctor or OB.

Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)

Hypoxia is decreased blood oxygen. Ischemia is decreased blood flow through the newborn’s circulatory system. When both of these issues occur in the same child, hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy can occur, which can result in severe consequences, many of which are actually preventable. HIE occurs when a baby does not receive adequate amounts of oxygen or blood to their brain, either before, during, or after the delivery. By properly monitoring the baby’s health during the pregnancy, labor, delivery, and birth, a medical professional can ensure that the baby is not in distress. If the child’s heart rate or temperature experiences a sustained jump, emergency action must be taken by a medical professional in order for HIE to be prevented.

Where HIE occurs, it’s often a sign of medical malpractice in that fetal monitors were either not used or not closely monitored. Symptoms of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy can be very severe, including retardation, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, seizures, or other similar types of brain and neurological conditions that can affect a child for the rest of their life. Permanent injuries occur to 20% of newborns that suffer from HIE, and another 20% of those diagnosed with HIE die before birth due to continued lack of oxygen. HIE is commonly diagnosed from 12 to 24 hours after birth, often as a result of uncontrollable seizures. Such newborns are often blue in appearance, and can be a clear warning sign that something went awry during the birthing process.

Contact San Antonio Birth Injury Attorney Michael Grossman

If you believe that your child has suffered a brain injury caused at birth, contact Grossman Law Offices at 1-855-393-0000 (Toll Free) for a free legal consultation. We’ll answer your questions and provide you with your possible legal options. If your child has suffered an injury that has resulted in long-term, detrimental effects, the compensation that can be sought through a medical malpractice lawsuit in Texas can go toward your child’s medical bills, both past and future, as well as other damages your child may have incurred as a result of medical malpractice. With two decades of experience in working for our clients so that they can stand to seek compensation for their injuries, Grossman Law Offices is ready to help you hold a negligent medical professional accountable for their actions in light of your child’s birth injury.