Medical Malpractice Claims Alleging Infant's Erb's Palsy Was Due To Doctor's Mistake
By: J. Hernandez
Submitted: 2010-08-27 11:25:21 | Word Count: 572
Erb's palsy is an injury that affect's a newborn's shoulder, arm and hand, giving the child a limp arm. An Erb's palsy injury may arise in the course of childbirth if too much force is used, thereby harming the nerves in the shoulder. If your newborn is affected with Erb's palsy you should contact an attorney immediately to find out whether you and your infant might have a medical malpractice case against the responsible doctor. Erb's palsy is an injury to the network of nerve fibers that deliver signals from the spinal cord to the shoulder, arm, wrist, hand and fingers, and so affects control of movement and sensation in those areas.
It is an injury that typically happens to newborn babies in the course of a tough natural delivery on account of excessive force applied to the head, neck or shoulders. The kind of deliveries during which a baby is most likely to be injured in this way include those with a large baby, breeched position or extented labor. In such situations, the doctor or other health care professional may apply maneuvers (sometimes involving the application of forceps or a vacuum) that may cause too much pulling on the shoulders in the course of a headfirst delivery or put too much pressure on the arm and shoulder during a breech delivery.
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Depending on the type and extent of the injury, possible indicators may involve: The child may exhibit loss of muscle control and sensation in the arm or hand; loss of shoulder or elbow function; poor grip strength; and paralysis of all or part of the extremity. Typically, the newborn tends to present with what could best be referred to as a limp arm in which the arm hangs limp and is rotated internally. As a result of the loss of use, the arm can seem underdeveloped in comparison to the normal extremity. Further, infants suffering from Erb's palsy might show several other symptoms associated with issues with circulation, such as skin rashes, slow healing, as well as a tendency for infections.
Many infants suffering from Erb's palsy recover within 6 months, frequently after physical therapy. In instances with al rupturing or tearing of the nerves, surgery could be required, perhaps including tendon transfers to compensate for nerves that no longer function. When surgery does not take care of the injury, the infant might be left with lifelong, partial, or total loss of functionality of the damaged nerves, leading to paralysis of the arm or arm weakness.
If your child suffer from Erb's Palsy you should immediately consult with a medical malpractice lawyer to establish whether you and your child may be able to pursue a medical malpractice case against the doctor or other medical care professional responsible for your child's injury. Consider that a plaintiff has only a limited time frame within which to act or be forever barred from succeeding on the claim and from recovering. Seek advice from with a lawyer regarding how much time may remain.
Author Resource:-
Joseph Hernandez is an Attorney accepting medical malpractice and birth injury cases. To learn more about erb's palsy and other birth injury matters including group b strep matters visit the websites
