A malpractice case in Suffolk County, Massachusetts was settled out of court, awarding the victims $2.8 million in damages. The injured child, one of a pair of twins, was born with multiple ailments due to multiple counts of malpractice and negligence on part of the medical staff. While mediation sped up the process to reach a decision, the victim and his family could have been awarded much more compensation in damages if they and their birth injury attorney had not settled out of court.
The mother of the twins checked into the hospital in labor and dilated 4cm at 38 weeks pregnant. The staff decided to deliver the children and attempted three times to assist the delivery by applying a vacuum to the first twin’s head. The babies’ heads were determined to be interlocking following an internal exam, and this was blocking their descent. Furthermore, the fetal heart rate monitor was showing unstable heart patterns.
Between these two issues, an emergency C-Section should have immediately been ordered. Instead, Pitocin augmentation was ordered despite the staff being aware that the babies were undeliverable because of these complications. No sooner than the Pitocin was being administered, a C-Section was ordered. Unfortunately, it was not performed until almost an hour later. Meanwhile, the mother and the twins had to cope with a compromised fetal situation aggravated by stimulated labor.
The injured twin was delivered limp, blue, and unable to breathe and was non-responsive to reflex irritation. His muscles were atonal and Apgar scores were critically low. To make matters worse, his umbilical cord clamp came loose after delivery, causing a 20 cc blood loss.
As a result of these medical errors, the child was diagnosed with seizures, an umbilical cord bleed and a hypoxic-ischemic insult (stroke). These issues led to diagnoses of quadriplegic cerebral palsy with left side hemiparesis, dysphagia, and oral motor deficits. In layman’s terms, he faces a lifetime of full-body cerebral palsy, weakness on the left side, and extreme difficulty swallowing and speaking.
It is not unusual for twin childbirth to have difficulties such as interlocked heads and non-reassuring heart patterns. What should never happen is adding Pitocin augmentation to the mix and an hour wait for an emergency C-Section with these complications. If you are faced with a similar situation, contact our team of Baltimore birth injury attorneys at Snyder and Snyder immediately for a free consultation.