Mechanical Birth Aids and Birth Injuries

Doctors often turn to the birth assistance devices listed below when a baby becomes lodged in a mother’s birth canal, often because of shoulder dystocia (SD), which is basically a baby with very broad shoulders or a baby drifting down the birth canal at the wrong angle. Seconds count in these situations. A distressed baby could develop cerebral palsy in only five minutes. Under such extreme pressure, doctors, like the rest of us, often make poor decisions.

Preparation is the key to avoiding an SD or other such emergency, and preparation is also the key to building a winning birth injury case. This preparation starts with understanding the duty of care. Because doctors have so much education and experience, they have little margin for error. An “accident” to most people is negligence in this context. If negligence caused injury, an Oceanside personal injury lawyer can obtain substantial compensation for these families. This compensation usually includes money for out-of-pocket losses, such as medical bills, as well as substantial punitive damages.

Forceps

This instrument, which first appeared in the 1700s, hasn’t changed much. Forceps are essentially large salad tongs. A doctor grasps a baby’s head with the forceps and tries to pry the baby out of the mother.

Newborns are extremely small and vulnerable. The extreme force of forceps often causes an external or internal brain injury.

External head injuries usually include skull fractures and skull bruises. These injuries usually deform the skull of a newborn baby, resulting in permanent injuries. Internal brain injuries are even worse. These infants often experience severe developmental delays later in life.

Vacuum Extractor

During the second stage of labor, when a mother is actively trying to push a baby out, sometimes the process of childbirth seems to stall. If that happens, the healthcare team monitors baby and maternal vital signs to stay alert to any signs of fetal distress. Vacuum extraction, or “ventouse,” is one method healthcare providers use to help get your baby out when they aren’t coming out on their own.

Basically, a vacuum extractor is a cup attached to a surgical vacuum. The doctor straps the cup on the baby’s head and tries to suck the baby out. The force is even more extreme than forceps. Possible serious consequences for the baby include:

• Skull Fracture: As mentioned, newborn skulls are soft and easier to injure. Most fractures are small, heal on their own and cause no long-term damage. However, more severe fractures can cause brain bleeding, which can be damaging. Some fractures may require surgery to correct.
• Intracranial Hemorrhage: Bleeding either in or around the brain is rare but serious. Common side effects are apnea and seizures. Less commonly, the bleeding can put pressure on the brain, causing brain damage.
• Subgaleal Hemorrhage: This injury occurs when the emissary veins in the baby’s head are ruptured and blood accumulates within the connective tissue between the skull and the scalp. Because of the volume of blood that can accumulate there, this condition can cause hemorrhagic shock and death if it’s not identified and treated soon enough.

Mothers often suffer severe side-effects as well, such as vaginal tears, difficulty urinating, and severe bleeding. These critical risks, for both mothers and babies, are far too great, usually because of the aforementioned duty of care.

Connect with a Tough-Minded San Diego County Lawyer

Injury victims are entitled to substantial compensation. For a confidential consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer in Oceanside, contact the Pursley Law Firm. The sooner you reach out to us, the sooner we start working for you.

Source:

acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2015/10/the-apgar-score