A lawsuit filed in Chicago alleges that a child born on January 17th, 2011 should not have suffered the brain injuries he did that led to his cerebral palsy.
This lawsuit alleges that monitoring equipment that gave feedback on the condition of the fetus was not given the proper attention it merited and, because of that, that the child was born with cerebral palsy.
In this particular claim, the child was alleged to have been suffering hypoxic stress. This is the medical term for not getting enough oxygen. A lack of oxygen is one of the most-common causes of cerebral palsy brain injuries. Oxygen deprivation to the brain is technically known as hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and the sophisticated equipment used during the birthing process is designed to detect it.
Like many cases involving cerebral palsy, this one claims that the cerebral palsy injury could’ve been avoided if the doctor had opted to perform a cesarean section. When a child is suffering from a lack of oxygen in the womb, performing a cesarean section is one of the most effective options for preventing them from coming to harm. When physicians fail to do this, the families sometimes end up suing for medical malpractice.
Medical Mistakes
Negligence generally manifests in the form of mistakes that did not have to happen. In this particular case, it is alleged that the physicians failed to differentiate between the fetus’s heartbeat and the mother’s heartbeat. It is also alleged that there are numerous other mistakes that demonstrate negligence, and when the family goes to court, the cerebral palsy attorney will attempt to establish to a jury that their child would not have been born with cerebral palsy had the mother and child received competent medical care.
Cerebral palsy lawsuits sometimes end up winning millions of dollars for the families involved. There are procedures in place to ensure that this money does go to the child and that the child’s own family members don’t end up taking advantage of them. The family members that receive the settlements or jury awards are oftentimes able to pay for advanced care that can sometimes result in their child enjoying improved mobility, better experiences at school, and other accomplishments that can help them to lead a more normal life.