Important facts about Erb's palsy and doctor malpractice

If you believe that your child acquired Erb’s palsy because of medical or doctor malpractice, please see an Erb’s palsy lawyer immediately. Your Erb’s palsy lawyer or medical lawyer is the best person to talk to if you believe you have a case against an obstetrician or doctor for causing injury to your baby.

IMPORTANT: There is a legal time limit, called Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations, within which you can file a claim for medical or doctor malpractice. Generally, beyond this time limit, you can no longer bring an action against any obstetrician or physician for doctor malpractice.

Circumstances wherein medical negligence or doctor malpractice has resulted in Erb's palsy or other brachial plexus injuries:

1. Failure to obtain a prior obstetrical history of the child's mother. For this purpose, a proper medical history should include history of diabetes, large babies as well as difficult deliveries involving problems similar to but not limited to shoulder dystocia;
2. Failure to check for and properly manage diabetes during pregnancy;
3. Failure to check for and appropriately manage the mother's excessive weight gain;
4. Failure during the third trimester to appropriately evaluate fetal size by ultrasound;
5. Failure to timely deliver a post-dates baby;
6. Failure to assign appropriately trained and qualified personnel to manage the delivery;
7. Failure to offer, in the setting of multiple risk factors, the option of cesarean section;
8. Failure to properly manage shoulder dystocia;
9. Application of fundal pressure (pressing the abdomen just below the belly button), which can actually worsen shoulder dystocia;
10. Excessive force or traction applied on the head or neck during delivery;
11. Improper or inappropriate use of forceps; and
12. Improper or inappropriate use of vacuum extractors.

It’s been found that a lot of cases involving brachial plexus injury that occur during childbirth are preventable. Obstetricians know or are supposed to know the risk factors that can increase the likelihood that a child will be born with a brachial plexus injury. Therefore the key to preventing a child from being born with this type of disability is identification and appropriate management of these risk factors.