Westchester County

Published on: October 31, 2011

Should video be permitted in the labor and delivery room?

by Stephen Bilkis

Hospitals and health care professionals have recently revealed worry over video cameras in the labor and delivery room according to new reports from New York Birth Injury Lawyers.

“It picks up actions that a still camera might not and the sound can make a situation seem worse than it is,” commented one physician to a reporter.

Some speculate the videos presented in the courtroom give the plaintiffs an unfair advantage with the jury because in the end, most people want to help a child over an institution.

Published on: October 20, 2011

Iraqi Infant Arrives in U.S. For Birth Injury Surgery

by Stephen Bilkis

U.S. troops in Iraq discovered an Iraqi infant with severe birth defect when they conducted a raid on a home she was in last month. That baby arrived in Atlanta last month for medical treatment.

The baby was responsive and in good condition, a spokesman for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta reported. He said it will probably be one more week before she will undergo surgery.

The three-month-old child left Baghdad in a military transport plane accompanied by her grandmother and father.

Published on: October 17, 2011

Lawsuit Underway Following Rare Medical Procedure During Birth

by Stephen Bilkis

As the lawsuit continues in the Washington County, West Virginia, Common Pleas Court, attorneys for the parents of a 9-year old girl who lost the use of her right arm allegedly by the doctors who delivered her, are questioning the expert witnesses, a NY Birth Injury Attorney is covering. One of the latest of the expert witnesses has testified that the nurses failed to follow established protocol that led to the delivery being rushed. This same expert witness went on to add that given the size of the infant, the doctors should have opted for a Cesarean section over a vaginal delivery.

Sources tell the researcher that the problem the attending nurses caused was they administered drugs that caused the mother’s delivery to speed up by increasing her contractions and did not notice the ensuing problem. By the time one of the accused doctors came back into the room, the baby was in distress and needed to be delivered right away. However, by this time, the baby had already become lodged in the birthing canal and due to her size, vaginal birth could not be continued.

It was at the point, the expert testified that the accused doctor attempted four or five different maneuvers before choosing to use a “once in a lifetime” maneuver. He called this a once in a lifetime maneuver due to the rarity that it is used. The maneuver is known as the Zavanelli maneuver, which is a procedure that involves the doctor pushing the fetal head back into the birth canal. The procedure is performed when the baby’s shoulders are too wide to slip through the birth canal and to prepare the baby for a C-section. The expert witness added that this procedure might never need to be used even in about 30,000 to 40,000 deliveries, a NYC Birth Injury Lawyer was told.

Published on: October 7, 2011

British Man Awarded £6m Due to Birth Error

by Stephen Bilkis

A British man from Tipton, West Midland, United Kingdom, was awarded £6m, or $9.7 million USD, sources informed NY City Birth Injury Lawyers. The total amount of the award includes a lump sum payment of £2.75 million, and the court also ordered that he receive annual payments for the rest of his life for care and rehabilitation.

The lawsuit was brought against the West Midlands Strategic Health Authority for an incident that had occurred at the former Sandwell Maternity Hospital for their negligence at his delivery by the man’s mother. The suit alleged that as she lay in labor about to give birth to her son, the attending midwives detected an abnormal fetal heartbeat. The midwives immediately called for an obstetrician to attend, but after waiting for a certain time frame, the obstetrician did not show and the midwives were forced to deliver the baby themselves.

Although the Health Authority had previously admitted that, a physician should have been in attendance earlier, but would not have made a difference in the child’s condition. The court disagreed and ruled that the six additional minutes the baby was kept waiting was minutes that the baby’s brain was deprived of oxygen, which resulted in the baby’s development of cerebral palsy. Brain damage due to a baby’s lack of oxygen is a well-known cause of cerebral palsy, a New York Birth Injury Lawyer has learned.

Published on: October 6, 2011

Brain Damaged Boy Wins Lawsuit

by Stephen Bilkis

An 11-year old boy from Solihull, England, has won a lawsuit, sources tell New York Birth Injury Attorneys. The suit stems from a lawsuit that his parents filed on his behalf due to hospital staff negligence that led to brain damage. Hospitals in Westchester and Suffolk Counties try to take every precaution to prevent this from happening.

Although the boy was born full-term even if by caesarian section, the problems began a few days afterwards. A spokesperson found that for three days after the boy was born that staff failed to properly monitor the child and did not investigate why he was becoming increasingly sleepy, floppy, and was not properly feeding. Sources reported to the New York Birth Injury Lawyer that by the time staff had taken a glucose sample, his blood sugar had dropped to a dangerous level and the infant was also suffering from hypothermia.

Once these issues were discovered, he was transferred to a neonatal unit and given a dextrose drip, but the brain damage at this point was irreversible. The boy now suffers from significant physical and emotional impairment, and cerebral palsy.

Published on: October 2, 2011

Experts suspect Opioid Pain killers may be linked to birth defects

by Stephen Bilkis

NYC Birth Injury Lawyers discussed a recent study that uncovered possible risks to pregnant women when they take opioid painkillers, which is found in codeine and oxycodone.

“It seems there is a small risk for birth defects associated with these pain medications,” a doctor said. “It looks like only certain birth defects were a common factor in the study.”

Statistics say that approximately 3 percent of U.S. babies are born with a malformation, including cleft palate, heart defects and spina bifida. Brain Injury is something that all doctors and hospitals in Staten Island and Westchester County are aware of.

Published on: September 21, 2011

Non-profit Consumer Advocacy group pushes to update the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976

by Stephen Bilkis

NY Birth Injury Lawyers have been examining the work of a non-profit’s group to pass what they call the “Kids-safe Chemical Act,” which hopes to be a major upgrade to the original Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976.

“Basically this group says there is a strong link between pollution and diseases in our population including lung cancer, infertility and birth defects,” said on NY Birth Injury Lawyer. “Current law does not force chemical companies to prove a chemical is safe before it ends up in children’s toys and products.”

He went on to explain that the Toxic Substances Control Act has not been amended since 1976 and has been recently called the weakest of all major environmental laws on the books today.

Published on: September 14, 2011

Delayed C-Section May Cause Birth Injuries

by Stephen Bilkis

Medical mistakes are the cause of many birth injuries, and a NY City Birth Injury Attorney has found that one of those potential medical mistakes is the failure to perform a C-section in a timely manner. Since the medical staff that is involved in the delivery of a baby has, the responsibility to monitor both the mother and child’s vital signs, they should be aware of both patients’ overall condition at all times. On those occasions when the medical staff fails in their assigned responsibilities, and the doctor should not begin a C-section when he should, the infant could suffer permanent damage. The same may hold true if the doctor does not perform a C-section when the conditions warrant the procedure.

A C-section is the common term for a Caesarean section, which is when the infant is removed through the mother’s abdomen instead of through the vaginal opening. This procedure is often performed when there are risks to either mother or the baby by vaginal delivery.

In order for a C-section to be performed properly, it must be performed within a certain time frame. A New York Birth Injury Attorney alleges that to be more specific, once the doctor makes the decision to perform a C-section, it should be done in less than 30 minutes. Late C-sections have resulted in permanent birth injuries to the infant, including cerebral palsy, erb’s palsy, and brain damage. Each of these carries long-term consequences to the child and the family.