Childbirth should be a wonderful moment in your family’s life, and compassionate care from practiced medical professionals should be a key part of making that moment a reality. Unfortunately, even small mistakes during the birthing process can have significant repercussions for a newborn infant.
If your child developed cerebral palsy because of a healthcare provider’s misconduct during delivery, consider speaking with a Connecticut cerebral palsy lawyer about a potential malpractice lawsuit. No family deserves to have their lives permanently altered by a doctor’s misconduct, and a dedicated birth injury attorney can work on your behalf to recover fair financial restitution for the harm you and your child experienced.
How Malpractice Can Cause Cerebral Palsy
During childbirth, and for several hours thereafter, infants are highly susceptible to long-term trauma from external impacts or compression. If a doctor’s negligence results in squeezing the infant’s head too tightly, the baby can lose oxygenated blood or sustain any number of other complications. Unfortunately, that momentary misconduct can have lifelong adverse effects.
Forms of medical negligence during childbirth that are correlated with an increased risk of cerebral palsy include:
- Improper use of forceps;
- Improper use of vacuum extraction;
- Prolonged compression of the umbilical cord;
- Failure to monitor fetal heartbeat or address problems promptly;
- Failure to address a nuchal cord
All of these behaviors constitute a violation of the “standard of care” applicable to physicians assisting with childbirth. A seasoned attorney can review a Connecticut patient’s specific circumstances and help determine whether litigation may be possible through a cerebral palsy claim.
Recovering for Short-Term and Long-Term Harm
Unfortunately, cerebral palsy is an incurable condition characterized by stunted motor function, missed developmental milestones, and other debilitating symptoms that may manifest in various ways during the first few years of an infant’s life. Treatments meant to maximize the quality of life for a child with cerebral palsy are intensive, time-consuming, and expensive, and most continue from the child’s early life into adulthood.
Recovering for future expenses and losses associated with negligence-caused cerebral palsy is just as important—if not more so—than recovering for immediately apparent losses like emergency medical bills. A knowledgeable lawyer in Connecticut can play an essential role in demanding fair compensation for every future form of harm the cerebral palsy may cause- including costs of future rehabilitative care and specialized medical equipment, lost lifetime earning capacity, lost enjoyment of life, and more.
Talk to a Connecticut Cerebral Palsy Attorney About Filing Options
A cerebral palsy diagnosis often means years of medical and therapeutic treatment to give the child a fair chance at a productive life. To make matters worse, many children who suffer from this condition have it only because of negligence by the health care professionals responsible for ensuring they and their mother went through the process of childbirth safely.
In this situation, retaining a seasoned Connecticut cerebral palsy lawyer is a crucial first step toward protecting your family’s rights. Call today to learn more about your options.
