Our Michigan birth injury lawyers handle cases involving kernicterus.  Kernicterus is a severe form of brain damage caused by excessive jaundice in infants. There have been incidents when the infants were not diagnosed and treated properly for jaundice because of caregiver’s negligence. In such circumstances, there may be a child birth injury medical malpractice lawsuit.

Kernicterus Facts

Kernicterus comes from the Greek word ‘kern’ meaning kernel and ‘icterus’ meaning yellow. Kernicterus refers to yellow staining of nuclei of the brain, called the basal ganglia. The condition involves specific part of basal ganglia, called the globus pallidus. Lesions of brainstem nuclei in auditory, oculomotor, cerebellum and vestibular systems are also included in it.

Signs and Symptoms of Kernicterus

Classic kernicterus involves the following:

• Specific movement disorders
• Hear loss or deafness
• impairment in moving the eyes
• abnormal staining
• staining of baby teeth

Testing for Kernicterus

There are plenty of routine and specialty testing services available to diagnose kernicterus such as MRI and PET scans, EMG, EEG, video EEG, metabolic and genetic testing, sleep studies, auditory and neuropsychological testing.

Treatment for Kernicterus

A number of pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments are adopted in order to relief patients of kernicterus. Pharmacological treatments include medication, and non pharmacological treatments may include speech therapy, occupational/physical therapy, rehab, botulinum toxic injections and deep brain stimulators.

Fortunately, kernicterus is a rare occurrence. However, the few infants who do suffer from it are very seriously impacted for the rest of their lives.

Contact a Michigan Kernicterus Malpractice Lawyer

If an infant suffers injuries due to kernicterus because jaundice was not timely diagnosed and treated, it can give rise to a medical malpractice lawsuit.  Children with severe sepsis often develop conditions that can affect the social, academic and vocational upbringing of the infant. These often require services that amount to a significant expense over a child’s lifetime and are sought as damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit.

It is essential to contact our office as soon as possible so that we can obtain your child’s complete medical chart to determine whether there was negligence involved in the treatment.  There are strict time delays for filing medical malpractice lawsuits in Michigan so it is essential to contact an experienced lawyer as soon as possible to see if your child has valid case.

Our Michigan birth injury lawyers specialize in birth injury cases involving forceps injuries.  Forceps birth injuries can result into serious complications for the newborn. At times, these injuries are caused by a professional caregiver’s negligence, causing birth injuries that can even endanger the life of the newborns.

Forceps Injuries

Child birth complications such as breech position, prolonged labor or large baby delivery may require the use of forceps to deliver the baby safely. The use of forceps is only permissible if the baby appears to be in extreme distress, when the mother finds it hard to push, or when the position of the fetus in the birth canal is not correct. The shape and structure of forceps allow them to be clamped on the sides of the infant’s head. But this also puts the baby at risk for damage if the procedure goes wrong.

Causes of Forceps Injuries

If properly performed, forceps delivery can save the fetus’ life, or prevent it from deprivation of oxygen. If the fetus remains without oxygen for a long time, severe brain damage may occur. As such, the only option may be to use the forceps. However, due to vulnerability of the skull, the physicians must exercise a lot of care when performing forceps delivery.

Forceps injuries not only occur for infants, but may even be harmful for the mothers who stand increased risks for urinary tract infections, lacerations and rectum injuries.

Effects of Forceps Injuries

Cerebral palsy and facial nerve damage are two of the most severe risks of these deliveries.  Facial nerve damage may cause permanent facial asymmetry that is especially evident when the baby laughs or cries. Cerebral palsy is a condition that develops when the cerebrum of the brain is damaged. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for cerebral palsy, and it is considered a very expensive developmental disability over the course of a lifetime.

Contact a Michigan Forceps Injury Malpractice Lawyer

If an infant suffers injuries due to the negligent use of forceps, it can give rise to a medical malpractice lawsuit.  Babies who suffer forceps injuries often develop conditions that can affect the social, academic and vocational upbringing of the infant. These often require services that amount to a significant expense over a child’s lifetime and are sought as damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit.

It is essential to contact our office as soon as possible so that we can obtain your child’s complete medical chart to determine whether there was negligence involved in the treatment.  There are strict time delays for filing medical malpractice lawsuits in Michigan so it is essential to contact an experienced lawyer as soon as possible to see if your child has valid case.

Our Michigan birth injury lawyers handle cases involving birth traumas.  You may have heard the term “birth trauma” but may not be sure exactly what it means.  Essentially, these terms include injuries that have just before birth, at the time of birth, or just after birth.  If the injuries are the result of medical negligence, it could give rise to a birth trauma lawsuit.

Pregnancy complications during labor can result in birth trauma from minor to severe or even death of the infant. When the physician or hospital does not take action to relieve baby’s distress during the birthing process to provide the best outcome of delivering during a complex problem, then the doctor or hospital may be subject to a medical malpractice lawsuit. 

Some Common Birth Trauma Injuries During Birth Delivery Process:

•Bone fractures
•Spinal cord damage
•Oxygen deprivation
•Spinal cord damage
•Forceps injury 
•Cerebral Palsy

The results of these types of injuries and trauma are often significant and last over the baby’s lifetime.  In severe cases, an injured child may required significant ongoing medical care, special education, specialized supervision, and even special housing needs.  In a birth trauma malpractice case, damages are sought to pay for these special needs.

You should be aware that not every birth injury is the result of medical malpractice.  These can occur even with the best possible medical treatment and care.  This is why it is necessary to hire an experienced lawyer to review the medical records to determine if your child’s condition was due to medical malpractice.  Many parents want this answer just for peace of mind and to know that they can do something for their child if there was medical negligent care.

Our Michigan cerebral palsy malpractice lawyers represent children and their families in cases involving birth injuries that cause cerebral palsy.  If your baby has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and you believe that the condition was the result of negligent medical care by a doctor, hospital, or nurse, you should look further into a possible lawsuit. 

A cerebral palsy lawsuit is a medical malpractice type of lawsuit that is a based on evidence of negligent or care that caused or contributed to this condition in a newborn.  Not every diagnosis of cerebral palsy means that there is a lawsuit, but rather it must be proven that the condition was the result of medical negligence.  Our lawyers will review the entire medical chart, from pre-natal care all the way through childbirth, to determine whether the condition was caused by malpractice. 

Damages in Cerebral Palsy Cases

In this type case, we seek damages for the child and family for the significant expense caused by the condition.  This includes the cost of medical care , nursing care, educational expenses, future life care planners (cost of past and future medical treatments , nursing care, education, evaluations, home care, modifications, ..etc and other damages that the parents of the child will be entitled to collect as monetary damages.  Other damages are sought for the other losses in a child’s life, like the simple enjoyment of life and the social aspects of childhood and adolescence.  As you would suspect, the value of these settlement is often significant.

Contact Michigan Cerebral Palsy Lawyers

The first step in pursuing this type of case is to contact our office to speak with one of our birth injury lawyers.  We will discuss the case with you and if wish to proceed further, we will request and pay for all of the medical records.  We will review them ourselves, then with a nurse, and finally with a physician to determine whether there was negligence.  We will then discuss our findings with you and advise you of the next step.