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Phoenix Arizona Birth Injury lawyers Who Protect Your Child's Rights

Birth-Injury-Statistics Awaiting the birth of a child is a memorable time in any person’s life. Parents put their trust and faith in the doctors, nurses, and hospital to safely deliver their newborn without any complications. All too often, though, errors and omissions during labor cause unexpected problems.

A birth injury is a devastating medical issue for any parent to face. Unfortunately, many birth injuries are completely preventable if proper medical care is given to the pregnant mother and to the fetus or newborn. Oftentimes, a mother’s prenatal course is problem-free and easy, but critical errors made during the labor and delivery process can have life-altering consequences. Your child deserves the best, and the Snyder & Wenner birth injury attorneys in Phoenix and Tucson, AZ, would be honored to help you and your family receive justice.

With over 86,000 births per year in Arizona, there is an alarmingly high rate of medical errors that cause tragic birth injuries. In fact, nearly 7 of every 1,000 births nationwide result in injury to the child. Simple errors, such as not realizing your baby has been deprived of oxygen for an extended period of time, can lead to devastating injuries like Cerebral Palsy. We routinely meet with families who have been forced to endure these unnecessary injuries. If you are looking for a birth injury lawyer “near me” in Phoenix or Tucson, AZ, our dedicated staff is uniquely qualified to represent your needs.

Birth injuries not only cause terrible pain and suffering for the child and parents but can also result in lifelong medical expenses that can financially ruin a loving, supporting family. In times like this, you need birth injury attorneys “near me”, who not only have extensive experience holding hospitals, nurses, and doctors responsible for their actions but who can also be compassionate and sympathetic to your needs.

Experienced in Birth Injury and Birth Defect Cases

This is likely the most difficult time you will ever go through. We are proud of the work we have done to support families in need throughout our Phoenix and Tucson communities and to ensure that your innocent child will have the resources he or she needs to live a long, happy, and pain-free life. Contact us today to see how we can help.

A birth injury can happen in many ways. Using too much physical force can result in permanent nerve damage to your baby. Ignoring low oxygen levels can affect brain and nerve functions, causing lifelong impairment. If the doctor pulls your infant’s head and neck toward the side at the same time as the shoulders pass through the birth canal, the child’s arm can become permanently paralyzed. With all these (and more) potential injuries, you need attorneys who are experienced in birth trauma cases. At Snyder & Wenner, P.C., we have handled cases involving the following birth injuries in Phoenix, Glendale, Mesa, Tempe, Tucson, and all throughout Arizona:

Birth Injury vs. Birth Defect

A birth defect is caused by a health problem that affects your baby based on his genetic makeup, or DNA. This includes Down’s syndrome, a heart murmur, or a cleft palate, for example. While many insurance companies and healthcare providers would like you to believe that there is nothing that can be done to avoid these outcomes, the truth is that many birth defects are caused by medications. In those circumstances, the birth defect could likely have been avoided if proper medical care had been given.

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A birth injury is not genetic. It is caused by the doctor or other healthcare provider who did not provide the type of care that parents would expect. Birth injuries are typically completely preventable if the doctor (or hospital) simply acts reasonably. The most common types of preventable birth injuries include:

Failing to schedule and/or perform a necessary C-section
Twisting and/or pulling the newborn improperly during delivery
Ordering and/or administering the wrong dose of medication during labor and delivery
Failing to properly monitor the baby for distress

What Are the Consequences of Birth Injuries?

Birth injuries are possibly the most traumatic events a parent could experience. While an injury may not seem too significant at birth, it could have devastating, long-lasting effects that will forever impact your child. The most common consequences of birth injuries include:

Cognitive impairment
Emotional impairment
Psychological problems

Neurological problems
Musculo-skeletal problems

In addition to the emotional and physical injuries caused by birth injuries, there are also significant expenses associated with them. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the lifetime cost associated with a child who has birth injuries ranged from $400,000 to over $5,000,000. The overall impact on a family can be life-altering.

Our firm’s continued success over the last 30+ years has resulted in being nationally recognized as a top law firm by numerous organizations, including Snyder & Wenner, P.C. – US News Top Law Firm 2015. To meet with an experienced Phoenix or Tucson birth injury lawyer “near me” in a confidential, free consultation, please contact us today or call us at (602) 224-0005. We have represented birth injury and birth defect victims in Arizona and throughout the country.

Birth Injury National Statistics

No parents can properly prepare themselves for the emotional adversity they will face if their child is the innocent victim of medical malpractice resulting in a birth injury. Unfortunately, nearly 7 out of every 1,000 births result in an injury to the child. With this alarmingly high number of birth trauma incidents, doctors and hospitals must be aware of possible complications and must do everything in their power to prevent injury from occurring.

Statistics

3,932,181	Births per year in U.S.
28,000	Birth injuries per YEAR
2,333	Birth injuries per MONTH
8,000 to 10,000	Babies & infants diagnosed with cerebral palsy per year
$1,000,000 to $5,000,000	Average lifetime costs for children with cerebral palsy

How We Can Help

Over 30 Years of Experience

We analyze your case with the top experts in the country.

We provide the compassion and support you and your family need during difficult times.

Most Common Birth Injuries

1,000 children born in the United States are born with a birth injury

Most Common Birth Injuries during C-Section

Why Choose Snyder & Wenner?

We know there are many law firms in Arizona that handle medical malpractice and birth injury cases. At Snyder & Wenner, your case is more than just a dollar sign. We truly care about protecting our community one case at a time.

It is important to ensure your child has the opportunity to be provided with the best medical care available for the rest of his or her life; it is also crucially important that hospitals and doctors are held accountable for their conduct so no other family ever has to experience the devastating physical and emotional harm your child and your family has been forced to endure. We do not rest until both of those goals are accomplished.

Contact us today for more information or to discuss whether you may have a case: (602) 224-0005.

Snyder & Wenner, P.C. – US News Top Law Firm 2015

Preventable Birth Injuries

A birth injury is especially devastating when it is revealed that it could have been prevented if medical professionals had acted properly. A baby’s life can forever be changed because of a doctor or nurse’s actions or failure to act correctly.

At Snyder & Wenner, P.C., we are here to hold medical professionals accountable when newborns are injured due to preventable birth injuries. We are committed to pursuing justice and recovering compensation for these tiny victims and their families.

Our Phoenix and Tucson preventable birth injury lawyers handle all types of cases including instances where the following could have been prevented:

Cerebral Palsy
Erb’s Palsy
Mental retardation and other forms of brain damage

Brachial plexus injuries
Shoulder dystocia

We will look at how the delivery proceeded and what valuable medical information was missed or procedures were not performed properly. We know how to value these claims correctly and build compelling cases that are tested before ever seeing the inside of a courtroom.

In Arizona and nationwide, the medical malpractice attorneys at Snyder & Wenner, P.C. are known for their ability to handle complex preventable birth injury cases. We invite you to review our verdicts and settlements for more information about our experience. If you suspect a doctor’s error caused your child’s birth injuries and are looking for birth injury attorneys “near me”, contact our Arizona birth injury lawyers today for a free consultation.

Birth Injury Glossary of Term

Absent variability – an undetectable amplitude range. This can be caused by many things, including fetal metabolic acidosis, neurologic abnormality, fetal sleep or inactivity, and cardiac arrythmia.

Acceleration – an increase in the fetal heart rate, which is usually associated with fetal movement and contractions. Accelerations are evidence the baby is not compromised.

Birth injury – any injury to the fetus prior to, during, or immediately after delivery.

Cerebral palsy – a neurological disorder that permanently affects the body’s ability to move, as well as muscle tone and posture. Cerebral palsy is most often caused by a brain injury due to lack of oxygen in utero (hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy). Signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy can continue to worsen as the child gets older, even though the injury occurred just prior to delivery.

Decision to incision – when the decision is made to delivery a baby urgently or emergently via c-section, the operative incision must be made no later than 30 minutes after the decision is made. The actual time from decision to incision is typically 5 minutes or less, and delivery can be achieved within two to three minutes from when the incision is made.

Early deceleration – a symmetrical decrease and return of the fetal heart rate to baseline that is associated with or connected to a contraction. These are typically normal and not concerning.

Fetal heart monitor – a device strapped on to the mom’s stomach that records the mom’s and the baby’s heart rate.

Fetal metabolic acidosis – a serious medical condition that means there are high amounts of acid levels in the baby’s blood. Fetal metabolic acidosis most often occurs when the baby is deprived of oxygen in the uterus for long periods of time or for many periods of time. If the fetal monitor strip shows minimal or absent variability, an OBGYN cannot reliably exclude fetal metabolic acidosis, which often necessitates an emergency c-section. To determine if a baby is acidotic, doctors will look at the arterial cord blood gas and the cord pH taken after birth. A baby cannot live in utero with metabolic acidosis for more than a very short time, so delivery is critical. Fetal metabolic acidosis can cause hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, which can cause cerebral palsy.

Fetal monitor strip – the printout from the fetal heart monitor. The OBGYN and nurses read the fetal monitor strip to determine if the baby appears healthy or in distress. It is the best evidence available as to the status of the baby. If there are late decelerations and minimal variability, the OBGYN cannot rule out an evolving metabolic acidosis, and if the baby is more than 31 weeks, an emergent c-section is likely necessary.

Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy – a type of brain injury that occurs when there is a decreased amount of oxygen or blood flow to the baby in utero. Known as HIE, this brain injury can occur just prior to birth, during labor, or after birth.

Intrauterine resuscitation – interventions by the healthcare team to try to resuscitate a baby that appears in distress on the fetal monitor strip. These interventions include changing mom’s position (having her lie on her left side), administering supplemental oxygen to mom, and administering IV fluids to mom. There is no objective or actual proof that changing positions or administering oxygen actually helps the baby. IV fluids can potentially help, and any positive effects should be seen within 5 minutes.

Late deceleration – a gradual decrease in the fetal heart rate that usually follows a contraction. A contraction is not necessary to identify a late deceleration, as the shape of the deceleration on the fetal heart tracing can still show it is a late deceleration. Many times the fetal heart tracing does not pick up the contraction, so OBGYNs must be careful not to exclude identifying the deceleration as late solely based on that. Late decelerations are a sign that the baby is being deprived of oxygen.

Marked variability – the baby’s heart rate is increased in response to something occurring intrapartum. This can include cord compression, meconium, and other occurrences. Marked variability has 25 beats per minute or more.

Maternal fetal medicine specialist – these OBGYNS specialize in high risk pregnancies and deliveries.

Minimal variability – when the baby’s heart rate moves fewer than 5 beats per minute

Moderate variability – the baby’s heart rate changed 6-25 beats per minute.

Variable deceleration – a slowing of the baby’s heart rate that varies in duration, shape, magnitude, and timing/onset. These are the most common type of decelerations.

In a lawsuit, what does my lawyer have to prove?

To successfully pursue a birth injury case, we have to prove three things. First, that the doctor or nurse(s) in charge of your delivery were negligent. In the context of a birth injury, this typically means that the doctor and/or nurse(s) did not recognize that the baby was in distress and failed to deliver the baby in a timely fashion. Fetal monitor strips and blood-gas levels can help the providers understand if the baby has enough oxygen. If the strips show decreased movement, or if the blood-gases are low, that likely means the baby is not getting enough oxygen and needs to be delivered via c-section right away. If there is any delay, the baby will likely develop a brain injury, such as Cerebral Palsy. Second, we must prove that the negligence was a cause of the baby’s injuries. The defense always tries to argue that the brain injury occurred prior to the fetal distress. They hire experts to say this in every single case. We have to use the actual evidence from the medical records to show that they are wrong. Third, we must prove what the injuries are that were caused by the negligence. This can include brain damage, paralysis, motor issues, and delays in meeting milestones.

In the event of a birth injury caused by medical malpractice, who can be held liable?

In most birth injury cases, the care is led by a nurse and the OBGYN. They need to be in constant communication to ensure the safety of the mom and the baby. If it is a high-risk pregnancy, a perinatologist may become involved in the care. Finally, in some cases, the family may choose to have a midwife help with delivery. Unfortunately, most midwives do not have any insurance coverage, so it is impossible to hold them accountable for any misconduct. In short, any healthcare provider who was involved in the delivery decisions may be responsible for the baby’s injuries.

What is the time restriction for bringing a birth injury lawsuit?

As with most medical malpractice cases, parents have 2 years from the date of the birth to file a lawsuit. If the care was provided by an employee of the State (for example, a resident doctor), parents have 6 months from the date of birth to file a Notice of Claim. The child has 2 years (or 6 months) from his/her 18th birthday to file a lawsuit or notice of claim. If the baby is severely brain damaged, that deadline may get pushed back even further.

What is the difference between a birth injury and a birth defect?

A birth injury occurs while the mother is in labor or in the process of delivery. A birth defect, on the other hand, is a medical condition that develops while the baby is still in the womb. The defense always tries to argue that the child’s issues are a birth defect, because they hope doing so will persuade a jury to let them off the hook.

Was my baby’s cerebral palsy caused by the doctor?

Statistically, about 1 in 345 children is diagnosed with cerebral palsy. The number one cause of cerebral palsy is brain injury caused by lack of oxygen to a baby’s brain. This is called hypoxia. The most common cause of hypoxia is medical malpractice, namely the doctors or nurses failing to recognize signs of fetal distress. If the fetal distress is not properly diagnosed and treated (by c-section or delivery), the baby is much more likely to suffer brain damage from the lack of oxygen.

Was my baby’s cerebral palsy caused by genetics?

A very, very small percentage of cerebral palsy diagnoses are due to a genetic component. Even in instances where there is a genetic component involved, negligence during the delivery can still cause additional and significant injuries to the child. If the child does not have any dysmorphic characteristics, such as disfigurement in the fingers and face, genetics are most likely not the cause of the cerebral palsy.

Did the doctor cause my baby’s brain injury?

The most common way a doctor or nurse can cause a baby’s brain injury is by failing to recognize the baby’s distress and potential lack of oxygen. This can include late decelerations and/or minimal variability as seen on the fetal heart tracing. The fetal heart tracing records data about how the baby is doing. If there are late decelerations and/or minimal (or absent) variability, that indicates the baby is going through periods of hypoxia or lack of oxygen. If there are repeated periods of hypoxia, the baby will not be able to oxygenate and that will result in brain damage.

What happens if the doctor doesn’t deliver my baby in time?

If a baby appears in distress on the fetal heart monitor, the standard of care typically requires a decision be made to deliver the baby. Delay in delivery can result in brain injury to the baby caused by lack of oxygen. The baby can withstand some insult and be resuscitated after birth to avoid injury. If the distress lasts for too long (around 30 minutes or longer) without intervention, the lack of oxygen (hypoxia) can result in permanent brain injury and lead to cerebral palsy.

What does it mean if my baby isn’t moving in my belly as much as usual?

Most often, decreased or absent fetal movement as felt by the mom is completely meaningless and does not indicate any problem at all with the baby. Babies go through long sleep cycles where they may not move or may not move as they normally do. Decreased movement of 15+ hours is most often not concerning to the doctors, as it is not associated with or linked to any adverse outcomes.

How do I tell if my baby isn’t getting enough oxygen in my belly?

It is impossible for a mom to tell if her baby is not getting enough oxygen. At the hospital, though, a fetal heart monitor will get placed on the mom’s belly. The monitor tracks the movement and vitals of the baby, including its heart rate. This data can be used to determine if there are signs the baby is not getting enough oxygen. Late decelerations, minimal (or absent) variability, and/or no accelerations are all indications of fetal distress and hypoxia. If the doctor(s) and/or nurses do not recognize these warning signs and fail to intervene in a timely manner, the baby is more likely to suffer a permanent brain injury.

Is the hospital responsible if my baby is born with a brain injury?

If lack of oxygen (hypoxia) was a cause of the baby’s brain injury, the hospital, doctor(s), and nurses may be responsible. In a medical malpractice birth injury case, the plaintiff must prove that the provider(s) was/were negligent, that the negligence was a cause of the baby’s injuries, and what the injuries are. If the nurses and/or doctors failed to recognize the fetal distress, they are responsible for any bad outcome, including brain injury. The hospital employs the nurses, and often times employs the physicians, as well. This is particularly true if a resident is involved in the delivery. In those situations, the hospital is also responsible for the injuries.