Some of the most traumatic injuries are those that occur to a newborn child. When giving birth there are many things that can make the process more difficult and potentially cause injury to the baby and her mother. In California alone, 40 babies a day are born with some type of birth injury. Birth injury occurs before, during, or immediately after a baby is born.

Birth injury can be caused by mistakes made by doctors, nurses, medical professionals, or hospitals. If your child has been seriously injured due to a birth injury, we are ready to help you.

- Attorney Moseley Collins

March 29, 2013

The Importance of Personal Injury Attorneys in California

personal injury

If you have received an injury through the carelessness of another party, you can get help from a personal injury attorney. The lawyer will help you file a case aiming to get the compensation you deserve.

Therefore, it is of paramount important to get in touch with an experienced lawyer as soon as possible. In every state, different laws are imposed as to personal injury cases. So, your first step is to find the right personal injury lawyer in California, especially if you are based in California. Given below are a few situations where you can hire the service of a lawyer.

For the most part, careless driving results in motor accidents. Habits like sending messages or talking to someone on the telephone can lead to a terrible accident. These things distract the driver’s attention, causing him to lose control over the vehicle. You should get in touch with an attorney if you have really got hurt due to the negligence of a driver.

Pharmaceutical firms may supply medicines to the individual without informing them about the possible side effects. In order to make sure medicines are safe for human beings, they are passed through a checking process in the clinic. Consumer products such as airbags, seatbelts, electrical appliances, medical kits and toys can be defective at times. Here comes the role of personal injury lawyers who are always ready to help you out.

If toxic chemicals, such as benzene, affect you, you will be likely to sustain serious injuries. At times, you may get cancer. Asbestos is another toxic thing released by industries. This can cause Mesotheslioma cancer. If the exposure continues, you can even lose your life. So, it is important for you to hire a lawyer.

You can choose to file a case against the doctor or hospital for their negligence that resulted in the injury to your kid during delivery. During childbirth, it is important to carry out important tests in order to avoid injuries.

Other areas where you can protect your legal right include assault, travel, and battery. Aside from these, you can also file a case if your kid has suffered a brain injury during pregnancy. The thing is that a personal injury lawyer can be hired in order to handle cases related to all of these situations.

Finding the right injury lawyer is not as easy as you think. You should go for the most experienced lawyer out there. If you are a beginner, you can take recommendations from your friends and family members. The lawyer should be skillful, reliable and friendly when it comes to qualifications. Only then, he will be able to get you justice.

To make a long story short, it is important to compare the services and fees of different lawyers prior to making a decision. Read up on the background of different lawyers in order to find out which one is the most reliable. During your first meeting with the lawyer, you will be able to know which one is the best. Hope these tips will help you get the best lawyer.

March 22, 2013

Best Way to Hire a Birth Injury Lawyer in California

birth injury

This article can be of help to you if you are seeking tips to hire a lawyer. With the occurrence of a birth injury, it is immensely important to hire the services of an experienced lawyer. This article aims to share the likely causes and factors leading to birth injuries. Aside from this, the article will let you know how to find the best birth injury lawyer in California. Once you have read the article, you will be able to easily hire the best lawyer available.

According to doctors, birth injuries can occur during pregnancy. Moreover, it can happen during delivery as well as after labor. Several things can lead to birth injury. During delivery or labor, the baby can weight around 8.5 pounds, which is one of the most common causes of birth injury. However, it is important to note that premature babies are relatively more vulnerable to birth complications. In the case where the infant comes out the unusual way, the baby is more likely to sustain an injury. It also makes the process of delivery more difficult. So, these are some factors that may lead to birth injuries. Other causes include medical malpractice where the doctor is held accountable for being negligent. This is possible with the help of an experienced solicitor.

Hiring an experienced birth injury lawyer can seem a bit difficult to you at first. The first thing you should consider when hiring one is to make the lawyer is experienced and specializes in the same field. Therefore, you should seek someone who has contacts with medical professionals. They can discuss the medical aspects of your case. They can find out whether the injury happened through the negligence of the doctor. Some attorneys offer free consultation in order to give you a chance to explain your case; in this meeting you can have an idea whether the lawyer is able to deal with your case. It’s a good idea to hire a lawyer based on the recommendations you got from your friends and family members.

The cost of hiring a lawyer varies based on the experience a lawyer has. If a lawyer has more than 20 years of experience handling birth injury cases, then surely he will charge you relatively more. However, it is much better to hire the best lawyer available out there because your chances of winning the case would be better. In other words, you will be more likely to win the case in the end. On the other hand, an inexperienced lawyer will do more harm than good to your case. Stay away from bad lawyers.

Now that you have good knowledge of things to keep in mind when seeking a good lawyer, you can make the right decision. Make the right choice when hiring a birth injury lawyer in California.

March 15, 2013

Birth Injury Lawsuits in Sacramento, CA

baby with partial facial paralysis

The term birth injury may sound familiar to you. This type of injury involves a newborn baby. Some birth injuries are transient, which disappear within a couple of weeks, while others are lasting, which take years to disappear. At times, the injured baby has to live with the injury for the rest of his life.

Experts have described various types of birth injuries. The most common ones include caput succedaneum, subconjunctival, cephalohematoma, haemorrhage, facial paralysis, misused forceps, brachial palsy, cerebral palsy to name a few. Low intensity bruises and inflammation takes a little time to go away but serious injuries can cause serious problems for the baby.

Many of the mentioned injuries occur on account of the doctor’s negligence. In other cases, the staff is responsible. As a result, the parents of the baby suffer a great deal of stress, especially mental stress. So, it may be a good idea to sue the negligent doctor if you have experienced negligence.

You, as a layman, will have a difficult time dealing with legal matters related to birth injury lawsuits in California. Therefore, it would be hard to take legal action against the defendant, making it imperative to find a reputable birth injury lawyer in California.

You must go for a lawyer who specialize in handling the birth trauma cases. Some lawyers are so experienced that they can take care of all types of cases that fall in the same category. If you are sure that your doctor is faulty, you can sue them to make them pay compensation.

One important thing that you should remember is that you have to have strong evidence in order to strengthen your case. Medical negligence cases are serious so having substantial evidence is essential.

Normally, these cases are kept secret from common people because of the sensitivity of the medical profession. As a general rule, when a party chooses to file a case against a doctor, he or she will contact his insurance company. Then the insurance provider and the doctor will become defendant and can make it difficult for you get compensation. So, you should have a lawyer on your side.

The health care provider may then appoint a physician who will conduct an independent examination including MRI on the baby, especially if the baby sustained a brain trauma. Careful investigation results in a settlement amidst the parties involved. If the other party pays you compensation, you can use that compensation amount to pay out your bills and other expenses. Your success, for the most part, depends on the ability of your lawyer and strength of your case. So, it is essential to have a meeting with the lawyer and talk about the validity of case prior to taking it to the court of law. You will be most likely to achieve success if the lawyer proves that the defendant is at fault.


March 12, 2013

Serious Clinical Negligence and Role of Birth Injury Lawyers in California

birth injury
According to statistics, the majority of deliveries end up successfully, and both the baby and the mother stay after delivery. However, some birth traumas and complications are due to clinical negligence. Each year, several newborn babies sustain injuries due to the negligence of doctors and nurses. Read on to know more about it.

The birth of a baby is a moment of immense happiness for the parents. After delivery, both the mother and the baby should be given as much care as possible. But accidents can happen due to malpractice or the negligence of doctors. In some cases the family has to tolerate this pain for the rest of the baby's life. Most of birth traumas can be treated, while some are untreatable. In very serious cases, the baby may not survive.

Birth injuries have been divided into various types. Birth traumas can take place during delivery or after delivery. Common types may include facial palsy, cerebral palsy, brachial injury, cracked placenta, umbilical complications, skin irritations, brain damage, arm fractures just to name a few. Birth injury sustained by the mother includes vaginal tears, infections, fissures and so on and so forth.

Clinical negligence can lead to different types of birth traumas. At times, injuries occur due to the fault of an inexperienced doctor while taking care of delivery process. In such a case you should hire a birth injury lawyer in California to file a case against the negligence doctor. Other reasons for injuries can be improper treatment during or after delivery.
Statistics also show that sometimes nurses or doctors cause injury to the baby or mother in haste. Some injuries are occasioned by lack of oxygen flow to the head of the baby. Delays in birth can lead to lack of oxygen.

One of the most common causes of birth injury is improper care given to the infant during pregnancy. Your gynecologist must carry out all the tests and procedures properly in order to prevent injuries. If she does not do so, you may go hire a birth trauma lawyer in California to sue her.

According to doctors, some injuries appear after weeks of delivery, especially if problems go undetected. Some tests should be taken by all newly born babies before they are released from the hospital. Chances of injuries rise when the doctors miss some of the important tests.

If you or your baby has sustained an injury due to the fault of the doctor, it is highly recommended that you get in touch with the most reliable and experienced birth injury attorney in California in order to sue the hospital or doctor and recover compensation. The lawyer will look into your case in order to do research and come up with an answer about whether you really have a case worth taking to the court of law, and whether you can obtain compensation. The lawyer will help you win and recover compensation. Hope this helps.




March 11, 2013

Hiring A Birth Injury Lawyer in Sacramento, CA

If your baby has sustained a birth injury, then you should not take it lightly and contact an experienced birth injury lawyer in California. Now, you might be thinking why it is so important to hire a lawyer in this case. Well, let us explain it in non-technical language.

First of all, you should understand that a birth injury is no minor issue. Instead, it can lead to a lot of other problems that can take the life of the patient. This injury is so serious that you have to spend a good amount of money to treat it. You cannot even imagine how painful this type of injury can be. Only the baby or woman who goes through it can tell. No one is expecting this kind of injury, so if this occurs, you should contact a birth trauma lawyer in California. Read on to know more.

The main benefit of hiring the services of a lawyer is that you set yourself almost free as the lawyer will be the person responsible of handing all the matters related to your case. In case of birth injury cases, it is often very difficult to collect important information that can help you get through the case without any difficulty. Aside from giving you legal assistance, the lawyer will support you and sympathize with you. This will make it easier for you to tolerate the difficulties. But the main function of a lawyer is to help you get justice and compensation as soon as possible. With your lawyer’s professional help, you can file a case properly.

Here it is important to keep in mind that not all birth traumas occur through the negligence or incompetence of a doctor. At times, it is difficult to find out whether the doctor was at fault, especially in case when you are the victim. Almost every birth injury attorney in California works with experienced and qualified doctors. The doctors help lawyers in finding out the exact cause of the injury.

If the lawyer finds out that the injury you sustained was caused by the negligence or incompetency of the doctor, then he will suggest you to file a case in order to recover a fair amount of compensation from the doctor. In another case, if the doctor was not negligent, then you will have peace of mind that he was not at fault.

When choosing a lawyer, you need to make certain he is qualified and experienced enough to handle your case. You cannot just hire any lawyer specializing in auto accidents or real estate. You need one who specializes in handling birth injury lawsuits. Similarly, you cannot just put your case in the hands of your family lawyer. You must hire one that has qualification in similar cases. Hope these tips will help you take the right decision at the right time.




March 7, 2013

Brachial Plexus Injuries and It's Effects On The Nervous System

Part of the nervous system, known as the brachial plexus, extends from your neck down towards your hand and arm. When someone has an accident, it may result in an injured brachial plexus. Normally, damage happens during delivery when the shoulders of the baby are compressed while it is coming out of the womb.

Nerve damage is of many different types. Some injuries are minor while other are serious. The severity of the injury is dependent on the kind of damage done to the nerves. Due to the damage, your arm, hand or wrist can get limp. You may not feel your hands because the injury causes them to sleep. In other words, numbness is the symptom of the injury.

In an injury involving brachial plexus, you can sustain different sorts of damages, such as neuropraxia, neuroma, rupture and avulsion. These injuries are severe and may cause you intense pain. Therefore, it is highly recommended for you to take medical treatment as soon as possible. Aside from that, you should hire a birth injury lawyer in California as soon as possible with an intention to file a case against the negligent doctor and recover compensation.

Serious injuries require you to have immediate treatment, such as an operation or surgery. In case of children, this injury is very serious. Injuries like this may lead to paralysis of two types: Erb-duchenne plasy and Klumpke’s palsy. These types of paralysis attack different parts of the body. Erb’s palsy and Dejerine-klumpke are two another names of these types.

Each country has a vast array of medical facilities that concentrate on targeting the brachial injuries. For these conditions, the surgeries are special, so you should find a type of treatment that can be helpful in treating these injuries.

If your baby is unable to keep control over his muscles, or he is having limpness in his hands or arms after delivery, then you should take your baby to an experienced doctor for medical treatment. You must treat the injury as soon as possible to prevent it from getting worse.

Different types of tests are prescribed in order to diagnose the injuries correctly, such as MRIs, Nerve conduction studies and CT scans to name a few.

Minor injures are not serous and can recover on their own within a couple of days. In another case, a surgery is performed in order to treat the condition. This process covers nerve grafts, muscle transfer or nerve transfers.

If you think that medical negligence caused injury to your baby, then you should try to speak to a birth injury lawyer in California. Medical lawyers possess years of experience dealing with these types of cases successfully. So, they can assess your case without charging any amount. They will find out whether you can file a case.




March 1, 2013

Birth Injury Lawsuits And Birth Injury Lawyers In California

Usually, a birth injury case is filed when a baby is hurt due to the negligence of a doctor during pregnancy or delivery. Actually, the key thing to consider is to find out whether the doctor’s negligence lead to the injury. Normally, it is caused by the negligence of a doctor or health care provider. In such a case, this negligence comes under the banner of medical malpractice.

The symptoms of a birth injury show up after delivery. In some cases, the symptoms appear weeks or months after delivery. For instance, if your baby is suffering from delayed development like difficulty in walking, difficulty speaking, then you should file a case with the assistance of a birth injury lawyer in California.

Let us give you an example of birth injury. At times, a doctor’s negligence can cause shoulder injury to the baby during delivery. To resolve this issue, there are many procedures out there. In some cases, however, nerves get crushed and sustain a permanent injury. If the doctor does not follow the correct procedure or uses too much force to dislodge the baby, then this can be considered medical malpractice.

During birth, the shortage of oxygen can also cause birth injury. In fact, oxygen shortage can cause a variety of injuries.

Another good example of negligence is when a doctor fails to monitor or carry out test over pregnancy or after birth. Failing to correctly diagnose an injury can worsen the condition. If this happens, you can hire a birth injury lawyer in California to file a lawsuit.
Now, keep in mind that not all birth injuries are caused by medical negligence; therefore, it may sound difficult to you to find out whether you really have a valid claim. Also, some conditions are of genetic nature and are not caused by negligence during delivery or pregnancy. In other words, you cannot file a case in such a situation.

It is not easy to prove negligence. Even an expert lawyer finds it necessary to consult a medical doctor to understand the case better. Once you have chosen a medical malpractice lawyer in California, the lawyer’s first step will be to get in touch with a doctor and get a medical report from him.

This can cause you confusion and it can be hard for you to handle such cases without the assistance of a lawyer. Therefore, you should seek assistance from an experienced lawyer. It is your responsibility to choose the right lawyer to take your case. If you have made your mind to file a case, then hiring a lawyer can get you compensation you deserve. Medical malpractice attorneys, for the most part, are well-experienced in dealing these types of cases.

A first meeting with the lawyer can help you know whether you can file a case. Initial consultation is provided free in most cases. If you have decided to hire a lawyer in California, then you should take steps today so that you can get best services possible.




February 22, 2013

Medical Malpractice and Birth Injuries in California

The delivery of a baby is one of the most important things a doctor has to help a mother with. The would-be parents do everything they can in order to make sure the delivery process is completed safely and their baby comes into this world safe and sound. Unfortunately, doctors manifest negligence and compromise the health of the newborn baby by giving poor care or by performing a treatment poorly sometimes. If you or your newborn baby had an injury due to the negligence of a doctor or nurse, you can file a case against them to recover compensation.

Causes of a Birth Injury

Birth injuries can occur from a host of reasons. At times, natural causes can result in a complicated delivery. On the other hand, however, sometimes a medical professional’s negligence can lead to a birth injury. Common factors contributing to birth injuries will include the following:

• Big baby
• Breeched delivery in which the infant comes out the womb with feet first
• Misuse of delivery apparatus like vacuum or forceps
• Premature delivery of the baby usually before 37th week
• Poor pre-natal care

Adequate pre-natal care and other steps can be taken in order to prevent birth injuries. Given below are some of the injuries that can be avoided by due pre-natal care.
Cerebral Palsy is occasioned by shortage of oxygen to the baby’s head. Cerebral palsy is a type of brain damage hampering a baby’s mind from keeping control over the muscles. This condition lasts as long as the baby remains alive.

Erb’s Palsy is nerve damage causing harm to the arms and shoulders of a baby. This injury happens when a baby’s shoulders get stuck on the pelvic bones of the mother at the time of delivery. Here it is important to note that this condition does not last as long as the baby lives in all cases. Doctors usually perform surgery so as to treat this condition.
Facial paralysis is another injury that can occur during delivery. This injury is so severe that the baby is unable to move its eyelids or mouth muscles.

When the baby is coming out of the birth canal, apparatus like vacuum extractors and forceps can cause harm to the brain of the baby.

Common fractures that can occur during delivery include femur and clavical fractures.

The symptoms of most of birth injuries disappear on their own in a couple of weeks. However, a severe injury can leave a lasting impact on the baby. If your baby had an injury due to a doctor’s negligence, you can hire a brain injury lawyer in California in order to file a lawsuit against that unprofessional doctor.

Compensation

With the legal assistance of a brain injury lawyer in California, you can succeed in receiving compensation for the injuries your baby sustained. Birth injuries caused by the unprofessional conduct of a doctor can get you compensation for your medical expenses, lost wages, pain and wrong death. So, it is of paramount importance to do research and hire an experience solicitor in California. Hope this helps.




February 15, 2013

Birth Injury Due to Sacramento Medical Malpractice

Pregnancy is a very sensitive stage of womanhood. It is important that mothers should be taken due care from their pregnancy to the delivery of the infant. It cannot be denied that the delivery can pose so much risk both to the mother and to the baby. However, there are instances that these risk and dangers are not being considered by many negligent healthcare professionals and thus birth injury happens. It is quite frustrating and irritating that after nine months of almost exaggerated security and care, your baby will be handled like a puppy in a hospital which you have entrusted your baby and your life.

You might be hesitant pointing fingers to the hospital or the people who participated in your delivery but there are ways to determine if you have a fighting chance in filing a case of birth injury. A medical malpractice causing birth injury will be evaluated whether negligence or lack of competence had manifested in the performance of their profession. If there has or had been any form of harm to a patient due to incompetent practice of the healthcare profession, we can say that there is a medical malpractice. However, it should be emphasize that proving “incompetence”, “negligence”, and “malpractice” is not a walk in the park.

There are many ways to establish these birth injury case requirements. For a start, you should be certain that there was a doctor-patient relationship between the two of you. This means that there had been mutual understanding that he is responsible to you. This can be established by hospital records, receipts of your check-ups to office, and other documents that will provide the information that you had hired them. This can be the first stage of establishing birth injury case.

Establishing Negligence

You should establish a clear commission of negligence for a birth injury case to develop in a court. The claim that there has been a human error in the practice of health profession is not usually enough. You should show that more than the error committed, under similar circumstances, other healthcare professionals would have not done the same thing he did to your baby. There are many instances that you can say that this had happen in your case, example are the following:

Lack of monitoring to your baby

You were not warned about the risk of your pregnancy

Improper use of medical instruments

Failure to recognize fetal distress

If these instances had been initially proven or had been obvious in your delivery, you can say that you have a strong birth injury case. If you think you are not aware of these topics, you can ask specialist about it. The medical report, photos of your baby, and other evidences will help you to find out if these instances had been committed on your delivery. The current health status of your baby can also uncover hints that will help other doctors to decipher what happened in your delivery and if there had been obvious birth injury. It would be better if you would start your own investigation.
Incompetent Act not Natural Cause

Birth injury relies in the process of qualification of evidences that would show there had been obvious incompetence, negligence, and malpractice in the delivery of your baby. If the birth injury of your baby is due to natural circumstances like unusual size (bigger than usual) of your baby, delicate position, prolonged delivery which had caused to fetal distress, and other circumstances which are beyond the capacity of your doctor to prevent, the birth injury case can be trashed.

It is also essential that you hire a lawyer who can fully assist you in the complexities of your claim. Hire someone who can simplify the technicalities of laws and medical field. There are reliable lawyers who charges fairly and can see where you are coming from.

Reference:
Silvers, Langsam & Weitzman, P.C. (1910) What Has to Be Met for a Medical Malpractice Lawsuit? | Silvers, Langsam & Weitzman. [online] Available at: http://www.birthinjuryinfo.org/Should-I-Take-Legal-Action/What-Has-to-Be-Met-for-a-Medical-Malpractice-Lawsuit.shtml [Accessed: 12 Dec 2012].

January 25, 2013

Facial Paralysis- A Rare Birth Injury in Sacramento, CA

In the life of parents, the birth of a baby is one of the best moments, especially the birth of first baby after marriage. Many will agree with this statement. Parents, especially, the mother is anxious to have a look at her healthy baby after delivery. The truth is that this moment is so special that we cannot describe it in words. The birth of a first child strengthens the relationship between the couple. Now, they begin to love each other more than ever before. During delivery, parents and the close relatives are busy praying for the new soul going to come into this world. They pray for the success of the delivery. Most delivery cases end up successfully. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

In some delivery cases, complications may occur and either the baby or the mother sustains injuries. As a parent, you should keep this thing in mind, so you may take the right steps in order to make sure the delivery is carried out safely. Let us explain this further.

In complicated delivery cases, doctors have to use certain equipment in order to make the birthing process easier. Now, the baby is very delicate at the time of delivery. So, doctors should use the tools with as much care as possible. Commonly used equipment include forceps and vacuum. If too much pressure is put on the head of the baby, the chances of injury go up. In such cases, nerve damage can occur, leading to injuries that are more serious. The injury may result in facial paralysis, which can be temporary and permanent.

Doctors and physicians undertake many different procedures in order to perform delivery properly. There are many causes of facial paralysis. At times, doctors give wrong medication that cause different problems to the infant. It is the responsibility of the doctors to let you know the risks associated with a particular medicine before giving the medicine to the mother. For example, pain medicines are often prescribed to the mother in order to reduce pain caused by delivery. These medicines can cause harm to the infant as well. At times, it causes facial paralysis.

For newborn babies, the facial paralysis can be either temporary or permanent. In this condition, the baby is unable to move its face. In order for you to diagnose this condition, you should pay attention to your baby while it is weeping. Pay special attention and find out if the lips and eyes of the baby move properly. If you notice that the lips or eyes do not move properly, you should get your baby examined by a doctor in California.

As said earlier, some paralysis cases are temporary. If your baby is suffering from permanent facial paralysis, you should meet a doctor and he or she will prescribe the right treatment in order to treat the paralysis. The treatments may cost you a good amount of money and cause pain to your baby. Birth injury can be avoided if the doctors use forceps carefully. You can contact a birth injury lawyer in California in order to know more about what you should in such cases.

January 18, 2013

How Inept Medical Professionals Can Injure Your Newborn and How to Claim Compensation in Sacramento, CA

According to the latest surveys, the number of birth injury cases is on the rise the past few years. Most of these cases occur due to medical malpractice. What should you do in case your baby becomes a victim of a medical malpractice? Read on to find out more.

Brain trauma is among the most common birth injuries that can be inflicted upon a child. This might happen in a variety of ways:

Brain injury is one of the more common types of birth injury. When too much pressure is put on the baby when it passes thru the birth canal, the tissue of the baby may have inflammation that may disappear a few days after birth. But if the swelling does not disappear soon, it is time to get in touch with a medical malpractice lawyer in California.

At times, doctors use tools, such as forceps and vacuum pumps in order to make the delivery easier. Improper use of any of these tools can cause serious injury to the head of the baby.

During the process of delivery, cerebral palsy is among the most common consequences of head injury. There are several reasons behind it, such as head injury can cause shortage of oxygen to the brain. Aside from this, facial paralysis can also occur due to an injury during the delivery.

Moreover, awkward position of the baby and complicated delivery can contribute to umbilical cords twisting around the neck. This may cause strangulation or termination of the supply of oxygen to the brain. The result of this can be cerebral palsy, paralysis and even death. It is possible detect this condition via proper monitoring. Also, caesarean is compulsory and its absence can lead to irreversible damages.

No matter what type of injury your baby sustained, you should go and hire a good medical malpractice attorney in California. The fact is that most of these complications may occur during the period of pregnancy. Another important point is that in most cases it is possible to diagnose the complications and handle them; however, some uncommon complications are difficult to diagnose and treat.

This is because both the mother and the baby are monitored by a team of doctors during pregnancy months. Doctors use high-end equipment in order to make sure both the mother and the baby remain safe and the process of delivery takes place successfully. So, if the baby suffers from an injury in the process of delivery, the doctors may be responsible because they may have committed medical negligence.

There are several reasons why you should get in touch with a birth injury lawyer in California. It can be a criminal offence to commit medical malpractice in a hospital in California. So, you should hire a lawyer in order to protect your rights and acquire compensation from the negligent doctor. With the assistance of a lawyer in California, you will be able to get the reasonable amount of compensation from the defendant. Hope you will find this article helpful.

January 17, 2013

Anti-Depressant Medication and Birth Injury cases in California

Latest anti-depressant medicines were introduced in 1987. These are termed as Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs). You can buy these medications only if your doctor prescribes them to you. Basically, these medications were formulated in order to avoid depression and anxiety disorders.

However, with the passage of time, doctors started to prescribe these medicines to treat a whole host of physical and psychiatric maladies. Examples of these types of conditions include obesity, alcoholism, OCD, bulimia nervosa, posttraumatic stress disorder and borderline personality disorders.

The bulk of doctors these days tend to prescribe SSRIs. This is because they feel that these medications are safer and more effective. Aside from this, patients can tolerate these medicines more easily.

Types of SSRIs recommended by most doctors include Zoloft, Prozac, Celexa, Paxil and Lexapro.
SSRIs, usually, are safer than other types of medicines. These leave out side effects and if a medicine does have side effects, they are not serious. In very rare cases, doctors have to reduce or discontinue the dosage because of the serious condition of a patient.

However, pregnant mothers should keep away from SSRIs. This type of drug can pose serious health risks for the unborn child. So, doctors recommend pregnant women not to use this medicine.

In 2006, a study related to SSRIs and pregnancy was conducted. An advisory was issued by FDA after the results of the study was announced.

The study results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study compares women who took SSRIs during the ending 4 ½ months of pregnancy with those who either took no SSRIs during pregnancy or discontinued the use of the medicine during that time.

When the results of the study was compared, it came out that pregnant women who consumed SSRIs during the last months of pregnancy were 600% more likely giving birth to a baby with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN). This is a birth injury case in California. This condition can cause death to the newborn baby. The newly born baby can suffer from breathing problems due to this condition.

Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn hampers the blood flow to the infant’s lungs and reduces the amount of oxygen that goes into the bloodstream of the baby. In such a situation, the baby should be taken to a hospital as soon as possible.

Aside from these, there are other non-serious complications in 20-30% of newborn babies. This includes pregnant women who consumed SSRIs during the last few months of pregnancy.
Apart from SSRIs, many other medicines have been associated with severe birth injuries. This is especially true when pregnant women take these medicines.

If your baby has received a birth injury due to the medicines prescribed by the doctor, then you may choose to take legal action against the doctor in order to recover compensation.

So, you should hire a birth injury lawyer in California. These lawyers can help you by providing legal assistance. So, you should take your time and find a good birth injury attorney in California to get justice.