Five childbirth injuries new parents don’t know about

Birth injuries occur when your child experiences trauma after, during, or before the delivery process. While some childbirth injury cases might be more severe than others, these issues can sometimes be life-threatening.

That said, minor birth injuries usually don’t require much treatment and heal on their own as your child grows. But severe childbirth injuries might require specialized medication and therapy to ensure that your child lives a fulfilling, meaningful life.

Complications can happen during the delivery process, especially if your doctor isn’t competent enough to perform the procedure correctly. However, depending on the circumstances or the type of injury, your baby might be left with permanent birth injuries.

As a new parent, it is vital to learn more about these childbirth injuries to understand how they’ll affect your child’s quality of life. So, without waiting any further, let’s get into the details.

[su_box title=”Similar Topic” box_color=”#54556c”]Child Birth Injuries: Types and Causes[/su_box]

Brachial Plexus injury.

A brachial plexus injury occurs as a side effect of shoulder dystocia, however, it can also happen due to other reasons. For example, a brachial plexus injury or erbs palsy occurs when a child’s head and neck are pulled in the opposite directions during the delivery process.

This injury is often caused by the doctor’s negligence; due to wrong delivery techniques, the child’s brachial plexus gets sprained or torn, causing damage to the brachial plexus.

Furthermore, erbs palsy has various symptoms, which depend on the extent of the nerve damage your baby has suffered. Typically, symptoms include loss of mobility in the affected arm, decreased hand-eye coordination ability, numbness in the arm, and much more.

Cerebral Palsy.

Cerebral palsy is among the most common and severe types of childbirth injuries your baby might suffer during the delivery process. This medical condition will usually require a lifetime of care as it will impact your child’s motor functions or even cause complete paralysis in rare cases.

While there can be numerous causes for cerebral palsy, it is neurological and often leads to stiff limbs, difficulty speaking, and cognitive impairment.

When your child receives a cerebral palsy diagnosis, it is of the utmost importance to weigh in all available treatment options. Furthermore, physical therapy might also be required to ensure your child lives comfortably.

However, medical science has come a long way as far as cerebral palsy treatments are concerned. Nowadays, children who have cerebral palsy have a higher chance of living a normal, everyday life while enjoying the many things the world has to offer.

Birth Hypoxia. 

Birth hypoxia happens when a baby suffers from asphyxiation during the delivery process. This type of birth injury occurs when a child doesn’t receive the appropriate blood supply.

Moreover, without proper intervention techniques, the child could suffer long-term brain damage, leading to intellectual disabilities and cognitive impairments in the future.

That said, birth Hypoxia is typically categorized as a latent childbirth injury. Meaning, your child probably won’t experience any symptoms until they are older. So, suppose there were complications during the delivery process, and your child has started to experience cognitive impairments.

In that case, it is a no-brainer to get in touch with your attorney ASAP. Chances are your doctor failed to identify the underlying causes due to medical negligence, and due to this, you could be eligible for a compensation claim.

Infant Jaundice.

When a child suffers blood-related injuries like cephalohematoma and caput secundum or gets bruised during delivery, they might develop infant jaundice. In fact, if the child doesn’t receive immediate treatment, it could lead to hearing loss, weak teeth, and life-threatening fever.

That said, this type of childbirth illness usually becomes prevalent after the second or third day of delivery. So, if your child is staying in the hospital, your doctor should treat them as soon as symptoms appear or preemptively if bruising occurs.

However, delaying infant jaundice treatment can lead to various long-term issues. So, ensure that your doctor is quick to spot symptoms!

HIE(Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy).

This type of childbirth injury occurs when a child doesn’t receive enough blood flow(ischemia) and oxygen(hypoxia) during the delivery process.

Factors that might lead to HIE include but aren’t limited to; Umbilical cord prolapse, placental abruption or bleeding, abnormally long labor, and much more.

Furthermore, the severity of the injury will define how Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy will affect your baby. Some children might experience loss of hearing or vision, feeding issues, seizures, and much more.

Conclusion.

If your child was recently diagnosed with a childbirth injury, you’d need help and support regarding your child’s quality of life, specialized equipment, treatment options, and, most importantly, legal action against the negligent party.