What is Perinatal Asphyxia?

Posted on May 15, 2022 by Shapiro Law Group

nurse changing diaper of newborn babyBirth asphyxia, also known as perinatal asphyxia could occur before, during, or immediately following birth causing harm to a newborn.

If you feel that perinatal asphyxia happened because of medical malpractice, you can hire a Florida medical malpractice attorney at the Shapiro Law Group.

What is Perinatal Asphyxia?

Birth asphyxia is when a newborn has an inadequate amount of oxygen during the birth process resulting in physical harm, especially to the brain. You can look out for some common symptoms such as:

  • Severe acid levels or a pH of less than 7.00 in the arterial blood of the umbilical cord
  • Neurological issues such as coma, poor muscle tone, or seizures
  • Respiratory distress, low blood pressure, or other signs of low blood flow to organs such as the intestines or kidneys
  • Issues with the digestive or circulatory systems

Prior to delivery, the baby may already display symptoms such as an abnormal heart rate or rhythm, or increased acid in the blood. Again, it is wise to reach out to a Tampa medical malpractice attorney if you are considering filing a lawsuit.

Causes

Prior to or during birth, there are several things that may cause or increase a baby’s risk of experiencing asphyxia. Such factors include:

  1. If the pregnant mom has low blood pressure
  2. Poor placenta function due to high blood pressure or a pregnancy that is more than 42 weeks gestation
  3. The pregnant mom does not have enough oxygen in the blood due to heart or respiratory issues or has decreased respiration due to anesthesia
  4. Inadequate relaxation of the uterus that does not allow oxygen to travel and circulate to the placenta
  5. Placental abruption, which is when the placenta separates from the uterus too soon
  6. Compression of the umbilical cord that causes reduced blood flow

Thus, medical malpractice may not be the only cause of birth asphyxia. However, if your case has to be malpractice, birth asphyxia attorneys will be able to assist you.

Effects on the Child

Did you know that birth asphyxia can cause long-term effects on the child? Families will more than likely experience pain and suffering as a result. Children born with asphyxia can have:

  1. Movement disorders
  2. Problems with developmental milestones
  3. Seizure and epilepsy disorders
  4. Difficulty caring for themselves
  5. Cognitive impairments or delays
  6. Feeding, speech, and learning disabilities
  7. Emotional or behavioral disorders
  8. Hearing and vision problems
  9. Mental health or neurological conditions

Since these issues can cause the family to suffer a great deal because they will have to devote more time and care to their child, it is imperative that you seek the help of oxygen deprivation at birth lawyers.

How Child Birth Malpractice Lawyers Help

Medical malpractice cases are part of personal injury law. Medical malpractice happens when the hospital or doctor fails to act accordingly causing the patient’s injury.

However, if the potential benefits outweigh the risks in such a situation where the baby or parent is in great distress, and an injury still occurs, it probably would not get considered malpractice. This is, as long as the doctor responded in a way that was reasonable based on their skill and the community standard.

Perinatal asphyxia lawyers can help you in cases where your baby suffered injuries as a result of birth asphyxia.

Your attorney will need to look for a couple of major elements in order to determine if you can file a claim for medical malpractice. The healthcare provider must have failed to exercise the degree of care and skill expected from a reasonable provider and the failure should be a direct cause of your baby’s injury.

Your attorney will understand that conditions resulting from birth asphyxia can cause long-term disabilities. Your child may require immediate treatment which requires additional costs associated with caring for special needs and education throughout their entire lifetime.

If you feel that you have a strong medical malpractice case that resulted from birth asphyxia, Florida child birth malpractice lawyers can assist you. A Florida medical malpractice attorney can help you navigate through the process and prove that the healthcare providers were at fault.

Call us at Shapiro Law Group today for a consultation and receive the compensation you deserve for the damages.

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