If you think you have a birth injury case, contacting birth injury attorneys in Baltimore as soon as possible is the most logical first step. If a child or mother has experienced medical malpractice during birth, we are here to provide the responsive and compassionate legal guidance you need in this demanding time when the future looks uncertain. With rightful compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, medical equipment, therapies and many others, you give your child the best life possible.
With the help of one of the best Maryland birth injury attorneys, Neil Dubovsky, you will be able to show that injury resulted from the negligence of the health care provider before, during, and immediately after childbirth. Our commitment to secure fair compensation for parents whose children suffered birth injuries from negligent behavior of medical facilities or practitioners is well-known. Do not wait too long to seek help with your child’s birth trauma, as your case may have important deadlines attached.
Available Damages in Birth Injury Claim
Depending on the nature and extent of the injuries, they can be extremely costly and last for a lifetime. A victim may be entitled to compensation for the harm, as the injury can lead to emotional suffering and mounting medical expenses. It usually includes compensation for:
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- NICU stays
- Counseling
- Occupational, physical, speech, and other therapies
- Assistive medical equipment
- Home modifications
- In-home care and education
- Special equipment and vehicles
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life and companionship
- Decreased quality of life
Limit on Medical Negligence Claims in Maryland
There is no limit on economic damages you can pursue through a medical negligence claim. However, the limit on non-economic damages (pain and suffering) is currently $860,000 for 2022, but the limit increases annually by $15,000.
Statute of Limitations for Birth Injury Cases in Maryland
The legal timeframe within which you must file a birth injury claim is called the ‘statute of limitations.’ The birth injury falls under the category of medical malpractice, so the statute of limitations for this type of personal injury claim is five years from the date of the alleged malpractice.
However, if the birth injury is discovered later, the statute of limitations differs and is three years from the date the injured discovered the injury. In addition, Maryland birth injury law also allows the child to bring a claim anytime before he or she is 21. If you are unsure about the statute of limitations, a childbirth injuries lawyer in Baltimore will help you identify the time limit for filing a claim.
in every 1000 children suffer a birth injury
injuries to newborns and mothers were potentially avoidable
Common Delivery Room Errors
Constantly monitoring mother and baby during delivery is a duty of medical staff. If they fail to administer proper care, injuries resulting from such errors can be devastating and have lifelong consequences. Some of the most common errors include:
- Improper fetal monitoring (problems with fetal heart rate, oxygen levels, and other vital signs)
- Incorrect medication administration (anesthesia, Pitocin, etc.)
- Misdiagnosis (failure to properly diagnose a problem)
- Excessive use of delivery instruments like vacuum extractors and forceps
- Failure to timely perform C-section
- Inducing labor too early
- Miscommunication
- Infections that are not identified and treated.
Some of these mistakes can result in injuries that heal in time, while others cause permanent consequences. Unfortunately, some babies who suffer birth injuries may require in-home and lifelong treatments to handle their condition.
Types of Birth Injuries
Many birth injuries can lead to severe conditions affecting the family’s future. Unfortunately, many things can go wrong during childbirth, so some of the most common injuries are:
Brain Injuries
Most brain injuries result from the lack of oxygen (hypoxia) during the delivery. The reasons for hypoxia are usually getting tangled in the umbilical cord, delayed birth, and even some infections. It includes:
- Cerebral palsy: As the most common motor disorder in children, it features a lack of balance and muscle coordination, muscle stiffness or floppiness, weakness in hands and feet, muscle spasms, and shaking hands. The condition is uncurable and lasts for a lifetime.
- Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE): It is a type of brain dysfunction that can be caused by cord prolapse, placenta previa, maternal hypotension, or breech presentation – basically any reason that can lead to the lack of blood flow and oxygen o the brain.
Muscle & Nerve Injuries
- Erb’s palsy: When the group of nerves called the brachial plexus is injured during delivery, a baby is not able to move and use the injured arm. Mild cases may heal within a few months, while severe cases may never fully heal.
- Klumpke’s palsy: This is a paralysis of the forearm, wrist, and hand muscles due to mechanical damage to the lower C8 and T1 nerves. The main symptom is ‘claw hand,’ where the forearm lies flat, but fingers and wrist are tightened.
- Facial paralysis: Pressure on the nerves on the face can cause the face to be paralyzed. The common symptoms are the inability to close the eye or move the face on one side. It can be a permanent condition.
- Horner’s syndrome: Injury to the face during delivery can cause Horner’s syndrome. Symptoms include a small pupil, drooping eyelid, and little or no sweating on the affected side.
Physical Injuries
Due to the excessive use of birth assistance tools, including obstetrical forceps and vacuum pump extractor, the consequences can be severe. Bruises, cuts, and broken bones can be the result. Also, some other conditions include:
- Caput succedaneum: It is a swelling of the scalp (edema) shortly after birth. It is caused by a long delivery where pressure is placed on the baby’s head. It is usually not dangerous, but it can sometimes lead to more severe conditions like jaundice.
- Cephalohematoma: Accumulation of the blood under the scalp can be the result of minor trauma during childbirth. It is not harmful to the baby’s health because the blood mass develops outside the skull.
- Collarbone fractures are the most common bone fractures during delivery. It may break during the difficult delivery where there is trouble delivering the baby’s shoulder or during the breech delivery.
Infections During Labor
Infection can come from untreated maternal infections or hospital surroundings. Babies are prone to picking up infections as their immune system cannot fight infections. B streptococci infections are the most dangerous ones that can cause serious consequences.
- Meningitis: The cause of meningitis can be bacteria or virus and affects the thin membranes that cover the brain and the spinal cord.
- Pneumonia: It is a lung infection that can be caused by viruses, bacteria, or fungi.
- Sepsis: It is a body’s extreme response to an infection. It is a life-threatening medical emergency.
Maternal Conditions
Negligent maternal care can also lead to birth injuries. The mother must be carefully monitored throughout the pregnancy by performing specialized tests to detect potential problems. That way, many birth injuries and complications could be prevented. Some of the most common maternal illnesses that can endanger a baby are:
- Preeclampsia: This condition is characterized by high blood pressure and high protein levels in the urine. It can usually be diagnosed after 20 weeks of pregnancy. If not treated promptly, it can lead to fetal growth restriction, placental abruption, and, most severely, eclampsia.
- HELLP syndrome: This life-threatening condition for both the mother and baby can develop suddenly and represents a severe form of preeclampsia.
- Post-partum hemorrhage: It can be caused by several conditions, like placental abruption, placenta previa, vasa previa, uterine rupture, and many more.
Why Do I Need a Lawyer for Birth Injuries in Baltimore?
Birth injury claims and lawsuits can be very complex cases and require expertise and experience. With a highly qualified lawyer by your side, you can establish a viable case that will obtain justice and rightful compensation for your child’s injuries. Your attorney will:
Help You Determine the At-Fault Party
We will examine your child’s medical records, which may include diagnostic tests performed, electric fetal monitor strips, blood tests, birthing tools and techniques used during the labor to identify at which stage of the pregnancy or labor the injury happened. Health care providers must apply the highest possible care during pregnancy and delivery to avoid causing the infant or mother harm.
Several parties could be found negligent:
- Doctors – OB/GYNs
- Attending nurses
- Medical technicians
- Anesthesiologists
- Pharmacists
- Drug manufacturers (if the dangerous drug caused a congenital disability)
- Hospitals (for faulty equipment).
Help You Build a Strong Case
We will help you build a case that supports a claim that the healthcare provider’s negligence caused the birth injury. In order to do this, we must prove all four elements of the negligence:
- Duty of care: A health care provider had a duty to provide proper care for your child.
- Breach of duty: Failing to uphold the medical standards of care is considered a duty breach.
- Sufferance of an injury: Your child suffered injuries as a result of the duty breach.
- Damages: Due to the health provider’s negligence, your child suffered damages.
To support the claim, your lawyer for a birth injury in Maryland will consult medical expert witnesses and prove the at-fault party’s negligence resulted in your infant’s injury.
Deal With the Insurance Companies
Many parents of an injured child are simply incapable or do not have the energy to deal with aggressive insurance companies. The insurance company may attempt to take advantage of the situation as parents are not familiar with Maryland personal injury or medical malpractice laws. So, it is very important to contact your lawyer as soon as you realize you may have a birth injury case. Neil has a lot of experience with how insurance companies function, and that knowledge will benefit his clients. Contact Dubo Law for free and no obligation consultation and case analysis.
WHY DUBO LAW?
Get the Justice You Deserve with Professional Baltimore Birth Injury Attorney
- Reputation: Attention to detail, diligence, and confidence in our abilities are the key features of Dubo Law legal services.
- Expertise: With almost 20 years in birth injury cases, Neil Dubovsky, our founder, has gained extensive experience and knowledge that will benefit his clients.
- Fearless advocacy: Dubo Law birth trauma attorneys are not afraid to fight aggressively for their clients both outside and inside the courtroom.
- No upfront fees: Based on the contingency-fee arrangement, we do not charge a legal fee unless we win the case for you.
- Exceptional results: We helped recover millions of dollars on behalf of our client.
- 5-star reviews: Every case and client is treated as family, so positive feedback and endorsement are part of every Google review.
Client Testimonials on Dubo Law’s Stellar Legal Services
“This experience was very effective and quick and Neil really made everything calm and understanding for me, he got straight to the point, no punches, plenty of options, and the staff are really friendly and polite, I would recommend them to anybody in the USA and also in the Bahamas, thank you for your cooperation, and the experience with you guys was worthwhile.”
“I was so impressed with Neil Dubovsky and the way he communicated all the details regarding my car accident case to me. His paralegal is awesome and was able to negotiate expenses down and the outcome of my case was better than I expected.”
“Mr. Dubo provided excellent services for my son and me. I am so happy he represented us, and I would definitely recommend him to anyone looking for an accident attorney.”
Contact Our Birth Injury Attorneys in Baltimore for Initial Case Review
Get in touch with Dubo Law today if you think you have a birth injury case. We will meticulously analyze your case and determine if you are entitled to recover economic and non-economic damages for your child’s injury. Besides helping you, we also want to protect the families in the future from falling victim to similar circumstances. Let us propose your legal options, call us today at (443) 275-6345 for free, no-obligation consultations.
Contact Us for Your Free Case Review!
Address
9515 Deereco Rd, Suite 704
Lutherville-Timonium, MD 21093
Phone
443-275-6345
Texting number
(443) 870-4329
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Monday – Friday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM
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Your health and safety are important to us. Please be advised that we are open for business during COVID-19 quarantines. All consultations will be conducted either via video chat, phone, or email.
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