Birth Injury Treatment

Recognizing Cerebral Palsy Symptoms in Your Baby

Published on: June 30, 2020 | Levin & Perconti

Cerebral Palsy is a Neurological Disorder Caused by Brain Damage

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the average prevalence of cerebral palsy is 3.3 children per 1,000 live births. Cerebral palsy is often a result of a birth injury or abnormal development during or after pregnancy. It can be caused by infection, fetal or pediatric stroke, undiagnosed maternal health problems, premature birth, and asphyxia allowing brain damage to occur before, during, or after childbirth. It is the most common motor and movement disability of childhood and could cause serious, long-term injuries related to other conditions like Erb’s palsy and Klumpke’s palsy.

There are four main types of cerebral palsy, the most commonly diagnosed as spastic cerebral palsy (70% – 80% of cases). Each type differs in movement patterns, location and severity of issues, and should be evaluated alongside individual symptoms. Athetoid, ataxic, and mixed cerebral palsy can be diagnosed alternatively. Most children with cerebral palsy will have symptoms identified after birth or are diagnosed by 18 months old. However, in some cases, symptoms may only become visible as the child becomes fully developed.

New Hope for Brain Damage Recovery After Oxygen Deprivation at Birth

Published on: March 9, 2020 | Levin & Perconti

New Hope for Brain Damage Recovery After Oxygen Deprivation at Birth
Around 450,000 babies are born preterm in the U.S. every year, according to the Children’s National Research Institute. Premature babies are often deprived of oxygen caused by immature lungs or irreversible birth injuries. Inadequate oxygen levels can decrease a newborn’s blood pressure, heart rate, and limiting the blood flow to vital organs and tissue. When this happens, irreversible neurological or cellular damage can occur and lead to permanent deficits and disabilities such as cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and vision and hearing loss.

Premature babies and those with brain injuries caused by birth have typically been treated with minimal handling, avoidance from stressful stimuli, including receiving care and treatments in new, quiet private family rooms. A new study led by researchers at Children’s National Hospital, published online on February 19, 2020, in “Nature Communications,” could lead to new treatments for children affected by brain damage caused by oxygen deprivation at birth. The recent study suggests that when oxygen-deprived infants are faced with opportunities for optimal brain development through an “enriched” environment, it may result in a more positive growth and healing of the brain.

What Makes for an “Enriched” Environment?

Military Hospital VBAC Birth Injury Settles For Millions

Published on: February 27, 2020 | Levin & Perconti

Fort Campbell Hospital Birth Injury Ends With $15.1M Settlement

On January 10, 2005, Kelly D. Wilson gave birth to her son at Blanchfield Army Community Hospital in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Fast forward to January 31, 2020, and the federal government agrees to award the Wilson and her family $15.1 million in damages to settle a lawsuit over the events that happened that day, fifteen years ago.

According to the lawsuit, when the Army veteran gave birth to her son in 2005, he “suffered a hypoxic-ischemic brain injury prior to delivery, resulting in cerebral palsy and lifelong neurological deficits.” And as a result of the brain injury, is now “wheelchair-bound, non-verbal and has involuntary movements and a seizure disorder.”

How Mom’s Race Impacts Labor And Delivery Mistakes

Published on: January 29, 2020 | Levin & Perconti

When Mothers Are Mistreated Because of Race, Babies Are at Risk of Preterm Birth and Harmful Injuries

ethnic mothers struggle against hospital system
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), an estimated 700 women die from pregnancy-related complications every year. Furthermore, the same research shows when a mother is at harm during the pre and post-natal stages, the fetus or newborn is as well. Just as troublesome, however, is that pregnancy and childbirth are much more dangerous for women and babies who are not white – and not always because of the mother’s socioeconomic status.

Researchers at the Blavatnik Family Women’s Health Research Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York have found that, “Data does not suggest that any differences in treatment patterns were reflected in worse outcomes for Medicaid-covered and commercially insured mothers within the same hospital. These results indicate that pathways other than insurance are responsible for the higher risks of severe maternal morbidity among black and Latina compared with white women that were observed in our study.”

January is National Birth Defects Month

Published on: January 16, 2020 | Levin & Perconti

In the U.S., about 1 in 33 babies is born with a birth defect each year, according to the March of Dimes. This makes birth defects the leading cause of infant mortality in the United States, accounting for over 20% of all related deaths. Several factors have an impact on how a child is born with a birth defect and whether that defect could have been prevented. Critical evaluations of the biological parents’ genetics, medications mom may have been prescribed, social and environmental factors, and prenatal care and physician choices all could play a role. Not to be confused with a birth injury, not all birth defects are preventable.

Birth Defects: A birth defect is a health condition that is present at birth. Defects can cause serious problems in a baby’s overall health, how his body develops, and how his/her body works, according to the March of Dimes.
Birth Injuries: A birth injury is defined as the structural destruction or functional deterioration of the neonate’s body due to a traumatic event at birth. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, “Some of these injuries are avoidable when appropriate care is available, and others are part of the delivery process that can occur even when clinicians practice extreme caution.”

4 Newborn Injuries Caused by Birth Trauma

Published on: December 20, 2019 | Levin & Perconti

Levin Perconti - Baby's Shoulder

4 Newborn Injury Complications Caused by Shoulder Dystocia

One of the most feared complications of a normal vaginal delivery, shoulder dystocia is a frightening reality that most U.S. labor and delivery teams are not nearly as prepared for as they should be. The American Family Physician defines shoulder dystocia as a difficulty during labor that occurs when the anterior shoulder of the baby gets stuck behind one of the mother’s pelvic bones during a vaginal delivery and ultimately delays birth.

Today, clinicians have many tools available to recognize the knowns risks of shoulder dystocia and should be trained to adhere to more conservative approaches and tactics to ensure a safe delivery with minimal harm of pressure put onto the baby or the umbilical cord. Although risk factors are identifiable during the course of prenatal care, doctors do continue to make delivery mistakes such as having a mom continue to push or fail to intervene soon enough. These medical errors can result in several significant birth injuries to the infant’s nerves and oxygen flow, and the mother.

Newborn Suffered Permanent Injuries Due to Hypoxia, Doctor Blamed

Published on: November 19, 2016 | Levin & Perconti

The birth of your baby is one of the happiest days of your life. That is, unless your baby suffers a birth injury. Although they happen infrequently, birth injuries are often caused by the negligent care of a doctor or medical team. The mother of a baby injured at birth has filed a lawsuit against the doctor and hospital, claiming her daughter’s injury was due to improper medical care. The lawsuit names Roseland Community Hospital, and a doctor, and is seeking damages in excess of $50,000.

Hypoxia in Newborns

Hypoxia is a lack of oxygen to the brain. In newborns, it is usually the result of aspiration that takes place in utero. This can happen with a difficult or prolonged birth. When the baby suffers reduced oxygen intake for longer than a few minutes, brain damage may occur. The infant may suffer from various types of brain injuries including the possibility of cerebral palsy.

What to Do After a Birth Injury

Published on: April 28, 2016 | Levin & Perconti

The birth of your child is one of the happiest times in your life. Bringing home a healthy baby is the hope of every family. Yet sometimes something goes wrong and the infant suffers an injury. Even with today’s modern technology, birth injuries still occur. When an infant suffers a birth injury it may be the result of a mistake made by the doctor or medical staff. Birth injuries are not only emotionally difficult; they can also be financially overwhelming.

Birth Injuries

There are a number of different birth injuries that may occur. Some of them are relatively minor and the child will have a full recovery while others may be permanently disabling. Some of the most common types of birth injuries include broken bones, bruises, brachial plexus injuries, perinatal asphyxia, facial paralysis, spinal cord injuries, and cerebral palsy. Many of these injuries are preventable and when they occur they are likely due to negligence – also known as medical malpractice.

Low Apgar Score Could Indicate Birth Injury

Published on: January 28, 2016 | Levin & Perconti

The birth of your baby is one of the happiest days of your life. That day could be tarnished if the baby suffers an injury at birth. When a birth injury occurs it is possible that the doctor, nurse, or hospital is to blame. Babies that suffer significant birth injuries may have ongoing medical and developmental problems for a period of months or years. Still others may never fully recover and will require ongoing care for the rest of their lives. Some of the most common serious birth injuries include:

· Brachial Plexus Injuries
· Perinatal Asphyxia
· Brain Hemorrhage
· Spinal Cord Injuries
· Cerebral Palsy

Babies born in United States hospitals are evaluated utilizing the Apgar system.
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Shoulder Dystocia Injuries at Birth

Published on: November 27, 2015 | Levin & Perconti

The birth of a child is supposed to be a happy event. While in most cases, the birth goes well, sometimes an injury occurs. An injury to the infant can be very difficult for the family and painful for the newborn. One of the most common injuries that can happen during vaginal birth is shoulder dystocia. Shoulder dystocia is an injury that happens when the baby’s shoulders become lodged in the mother during birth. The newborn’s head is delivered; however, the baby gets stuck. This may result in birth injuries to the child. In many cases, the injury could have been prevented and if so, the doctor may have acted in a negligent manner.

Shoulder Dystocia

Shoulder dystocia can cause a prolonged or delayed birth. In situations where the birth is delayed, the child could be deprived of oxygen. If there is a lack of oxygen, brain damage may occur. An attempt by the doctor to assist the birth by using forceps or a vacuum will increase the possibility of nerve injuries to the shoulder which could be severe. For these reasons, doctors need to be aware of the potential for a problem and prepare accordingly.