Chicago Injury Attorney Blog

According to a new study found in the journal Human Reproduction, children conceived with assisted reproduction techniques have a higher-than-average risk of developing cerebral palsy. The study, which involved 590,000 children born between 1995 and 2003 in Demark, found that babies made with the help of fertility treatments were two times more likely to be diagnosed as suffering from cerebral palsy than those who were conceived naturally. These findings confirm results determined by a number of other studies. That said, it is also important to note that this risk is still considered low considering that only 2 or 3 out of every 1000 babies in the US and Europe have cerebral palsy.

According to the study’s findings, the increased odds of twin and multiple births and preterm deliveries that come with assisted reproduction may contribute to the increased risk that a baby will be born with the cerebral palsy. Researchers say that if this is so then implanting women with just one embryo at a time may help lower the odds. They actually found no increased risk of cerebral palsy among singleton births conceived through in-vitro fertilization.

Other findings from the study:
• 55% of babies conceived using fertility drugs had a 55% higher risk of developing cerebral palsy than children who were conceived naturally
• 63% of infants conceived through assisted reproduction were born prematurely
• 54% of assisted-reproduction births were twins or triplets

Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is any one of a number of neurological disorders that can permanently impair muscle coordination and body movement. It can lead to permanent disabilities. A person with severe cerebral palsy may require specialized care for life. While cerebral palsy can develop naturally in some children, there are cerebral palsy cases that occur because of Illinois medical negligence. When medical mistakes contributed to causing your child’s cerebral palsy, you may have reason to sue the medical professionals involved for Chicago, Illinois medical malpractice. This is where an experienced Chicago birthing injury law firm can step in.

Fertility treatment tied to risk of cerebral palsy, Reuters, July 2, 2010

Cerebral Palsy Information Page, NINDS.NIH.Gov

Related Web Resources:
CerebralPalsy.org

Human Reproduction

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A $9.5 million cerebral palsy settlement has been reached in the Illinois medical malpractice case against Sherman Hospital, the employer of nurse midwife Mary Traub, and Dr. Jae Eun Han. The Kane County complaint was filed on behalf of the family of Patrick O'Came, who was born in 1996. Patrick, who was cerebral palsy, will required specialized care for life.

According to the plaintiffs’ Illinois birthing malpractice lawsuit, during delivery. Traub employed “fundal pressure” to help push Patrick, who was in distress, through the birth canal. The complaint contends that it was the use of this technique that cut off the oxygen that was flowing through the baby’s umbilical cord for a long enough period of time that he ended up being born with cerebral palsy.

The plaintiffs also say that the hospital did not follow proper procedure when Traub delivered O’Came without Dr. Jae Eun Han present. Han, who was her sponsoring obstetrician, was out of the country at the time visiting relatives in Korea. Although a backup doctor was appointed, the physician was not told about the problem soon enough that an alternative course of delivery could be recommended. The plaintiffs’ birth injury lawyer contends that Patrick would have been born a healthy baby if only his mother had been given the proper medical care while a supervising physician was present.

Birthing Malpractice
Chicago, Illinois birthing malpractice can lead to serious health complications for the baby that can impair him/her for life. Examples of birthing mistakes:

• Failure to anticipate birth complications
• Not acting right away to remedy umbilical cord entrapment
• Delayed cesarean delivery
• Forceps errors
• Vacuum extractor mistakes
• Delayed response to fetal distress
• Failure to properly monitor the vitals of the baby and mother
• Pitocin overdose
• Delayed delivery

Sherman agrees to lawsuit settlement, Daily Herald, April 17, 2010

Related Web Resources:
NINDS Cerebral Palsy Information Page, National Institutes of Health

Fundal Pressure, Childbirthconnection.org

The family of Christian Arroyo has been awarded a $29.1 million Chicago, Illinois medical malpractice verdict against the federal government. Arroyo, 6, has cerebral palsy and is a quadriplegic.

Arroyo was born in May 2003 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. According to the plaintiffs, Arroyo’s mother Maria developed an infection before she went into labor and her water broke early. The Arroyo family says that even though the newborn displayed signs that he was suffering from an infection, doctors failed to treat him. This allowed the infection to enter his bloodstream, causing permanent brain damage. Now, Christian is a spastic quadriplegic with cerebral palsy who is unable to talk, walk, or eat with his mouth.

The family filed its Chicago cerebral palsy lawsuit against the US government because the doctors that delivered Arroyo were employed by the Erie Family Health Center, a Chicago clinic that is federally funded. Under the Federal Tort Claims Act, injured parties can sue the federal government. A judge, not a jury decides these cases. The verdict will be offset by the $6.5 million Chicago birthing malpractice lawsuit reached between the plaintiffs and the hospital last year.

Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy is a permanent condition that leaves a child with serious issues affecting movement and muscle coordination. When caused by the negligent or careless actions of a medical professional during birth, the family may be entitled to receive Chicago medical malpractice compensation involving injuries to a minor.

Living with cerebral palsy can be extremely challenging for a child, who may not be able to speak, move, or eat properly. Mental retardation can also occur. Cerebral palsy can be costly to live with, which is one reason why it is important that your family receive all of the personal injury compensation that your child is owed.

Family awarded $29M for quadriplegic child, Chicago Sun-Times, April 6, 2010

Gurnee family wins $29.1 million in medical malpractice lawsuit, Daily Herald, April 1, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Cerebral palsy, KidsHealth.org

Forms of Cerebral Palsy, Origins of Palsy

Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago

In Winnebago County, Illinois, the family of 4-year-old Jeremy Law has agreed to settle its birthing malpractice lawsuit with a Rockford hospital for $12 million. This is the largest personal injury settlement to ever be issued in this county. Jeremy now has Cerebral palsy.

Patricia Law was admitted to St. Anthony Medical Center's labor and delivery area on November 7, 2004. A nurse gave her Pitocin to induce labor. Dr. Fernando has stated under oath that he gave Patricia the drug because nursing workers had told him that the baby was positioned heads-down and ready to be delivered. He says he would have performed a Caesarian birth if he had been notified that the baby was in breech position.

Even though the baby’s fetal heart beat became irregular, the nurse administered more Pitocin and did not conduct a vaginal exam to check the baby’s position. Some 15 minutes later, the baby experienced bradycardia and there was not enough oxygen traveling to his brain. It wasn’t until 20 minutes later that Jeremy was delivered by emergency Caesarean.

According to the Illinois medical malpractice lawsuit , hospital staffers neglected to identify that Jeremy was positioned in his mother’s womb for a breech delivery, neglected to detect signs of fetal distress, and neglected to deliver him by Caesarean procedure in a timely manner. Because of their medical negligence, the complaint contends that Jeremy sustained major brain damage because he did not receive enough oxygen during his delivery.

Pediatric neurologists have told the Laws that Jeremy’s developmental age will not go beyond what is now—that of a 2-month-old infant. He will continue to physically develop but he won’t be able to roll over, hold his head up, crawl, sit, stand, or grasp.

Illinois Cerebral Palsy Lawsuits
In order to prove that your child was the victim of birthing malpractice that caused his or her Cerebral palsy, you will need the help of an experienced Chicago birthing malpractice lawyer that understands the complexities involved in these kinds of Illinois medical malpractice cases. In many cases, a child with Cerebral palsy will require specialized medical attention and nursing care for life. The financial toll is generally too much for a family to carry without obtaining obtaining damages from all negligent parties.

You and your child may be entitled to Illinois birthing malpractice damages for the devastating harm, pain, and suffering that all of you must now endure.

$12 Million Settlement in Birth Injury Lawsuit Against OSF Healthcare, Business Wire, May 20, 2009

Related Web Resources:
NINDS Cerebral Palsy Information Page

Cerebral Palsy Program/Guide

A $6.5 million Illinois medical malpractice settlement has been reached in a birthing injury case involving a now 7-year-old boy. The child, Roberto Morales Jr, allegedly suffers from cerebral palsy because the obstetrician and labor and delivery nurse at the Provena Mercy Medical Center failed to properly monitor his heart rate and deliver him hours before an emergency C-section finally took place. His mother had been given Pitocin to accelerate her contractions. Morales was born with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and metabolic acidosis.

After his birth, the he was flown to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge so he could get the higher level of medical attention that he needed. Provena Mercy Medical Center was not equipped to deal with his brain injury. Because of the severity of Morales's birth injuries, the plaintiffs’ attorneys say he had to stay at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital for a month.

The settlement will pay for the ongoing medical care and attention that he needs. The birthing malpractice lawsuit’s plaintiffs are Morales’s mother Joann Williams and Park National Bank. They are the coguardians of the boy’s estate. The defendants in the case are Provena Mercy Medical Center, obstetrician Judson Jones, Advocate Health Care Network, Dreyer Medical Group Ltd., and Dreyer Clinic Inc.

Cerebral Palsy
If your child is suffering from cerebral palsy because medical mistakes or negligence was a factor during his delivery, you may have grounds to file an Illinois birthing malpractice lawsuit. There is no treatment or cure for cerebral palsy, which is a condition that lasts for life.

Cerebral palsy can lead to ataxia, spasticity, motility problems, muscular issues, and other problems. Caring for a child or adult with cerebral palsy can be a costly endeavor, which is why it is important that you explore your legal options for personal injury recovery.

$6.5M To Baby In Malpractice Suit Settlement, CBS2 Chicago, January 12, 2009

Aurora hospital settles $6.5 million brain damage baby lawsuit, Justice News Flash, January 15, 2009

Related Web Resources:
NINDS Cerebral Palsy Information Page, National Institute of Neurological Disorders

Provena Mercy Medical Center

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