Family Recovers $1,500,000 For Baby's Brain Injury
There are a number of factors that can turn an otherwise normal pregnancy into a high risk one
. One of these is an elevated blood pressure which may put a pregnant woman at high risk for a placental abruption. This is a condition in which the placenta separates from the uterus prematurely. When this happens the blood vessels in the region are torn triggering bleeding that may considerable decrease the amount of oxygen that reached the baby. Unless a physician takes action right away - possibly with a C-section - the unborn child may suffer brain damage or even die.Consider a matter concerning a pregnant woman was admitted to the hospital in the thirty fifth week of her pregnancy for significant hypertension which was induced by the pregnancy. The woman remained in the hospital for 5 days before anyone in the medical staff ordered that she be connected to a fetal heart rate monitor machine. The monitoring was ordered only after the mothers condition worsened. Despite the fact that the output of the monitor revealed that the baby was in distress the staff gave the mother drugs to induce her labor. Eight hours later the monitor showed that the baby was in severe distress. At this point a placental abruption was finally diagnosed. Even then another hour passed before the doctor performed a C-section. Because of the holdup the baby suffered a form of brain damage referred to as acute hypoxic-ischemia which is due to a lack of oxygen.
The baby was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and an died from complications at two and a half. The law firm that represented the family reported that it accomplished a settlement in the amount of $1,500,000.
This case serves as an example to medical professionals. Because severe high blood pressure is known to lead to a number of perilous problems in pregnancy including placental abruptions it may be malpractice to not diagnose one when it has occurred and take proper and timely steps to protect the babys health.
Here we have a woman who is admitted to the hospital equipped to do the required monitoring to check for a possible placental abruption including ultrasound machines and fetal heart rate monitors. She is admitted with extreme high blood pressure which is a know risk factor for a placental abruption. However, none of the physicians or nurses at the hospital ordered monitoring her for signs that she could be having a placental abruption until five days into her stay.
There is no indication in the document that the expectant mother had pain in the back or abdomen or that she was experiencing vaginal bleeding - signs that often come along with a placental abruption. But not all women who suffer a placental abruption have these symptoms. An ultrasound, however, may help find a placental abruption in which the blood is contained and so the expectant mother does not experience vaginal bleeding. And even after the fetal distress got to dangerous levels it was still an additional hour before the physician did a C-section.
In pursuing the case the law firm representing the family no doubt would, with the help of medical experts, have pointed to the facts of the cases as establishing
(1) that the mothers severe hypertension made her susceptible to a placental abruption and thus required that she be closely monitored for that possibility,
(2) that there were indications that the baby was in fetal distress and that this situation was allowed to worsen greatly without proper action,
(3) that there was yet another holdup even as the fetal distress reached a severe level of an additional hour before a C-section was performed,
(4) that these delays forced the baby to go for an extended stretch of time without an adequate oxygen supply, and
(5) that this lead to brain damage, the development of cerebral palsy, and the eventual death of the child from complications due to cerebral palsy.
and that these delays forced the unborn child to go for an extended period of time without a sufficient oxygen supply, leading to brain damage, the development of cerebral palsy, and the eventual death of the child from complications due to cerebral palsy.
Although settlements in these kind of malpractice matters are frequently agreed to without any admission of liability on the part of the medical staff or hospital it is not surprising that they settled the matter for $1,500,000.
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