You can definitely seek compensation if your child suffered facial paralysis as a result of a birth injury, particularly if that injury resulted from medical negligence (carelessness) or malpractice during the childbirth process. Facial paralysis during birth can be deeply distressing for both the child and his or her parents. The paralysis may occur due to several factors, including the improper use of medical instruments or negligent (careless) actions during labor and delivery.
What are the Causes of Facial Paralysis at Birth?
Facial paralysis during birth is often associated with damage to the facial nerve, which can occur due to various reasons, including:
Trauma during birth: One common cause of facial paralysis is trauma to the baby’s facial nerve during labor and delivery. This can happen if excessive force is applied during the birthing process, particularly when using forceps or vacuum extractors.
Prolonged pressure: Prolonged pressure on the baby’s face or head during a difficult labor can lead to facial nerve injury, resulting in paralysis.
Brachial plexus injury: Sometimes, a brachial plexus injury (which affects the nerves controlling the arm and shoulder) can lead to facial nerve damage if it extends to the associated nerves.
Medical Malpractice and Negligence (carelessness)
To seek compensation for a facial paralysis birth injury, plaintiffs mush show that the injury was a result of medical negligence (carelessness) or malpractice. This may involve proving that the healthcare provider or providers involved in the childbirth deviated from the standard of care expected in a similar situation.
Such negligent (careless) actions or omissions include, but are not limited to:
• Incorrect use of forceps or vacuum extractors
• Failure to monitor the baby’s position and vital signs during labor
• Delay in recognizing and responding to signs of distress in the baby
• Inadequate training or skill in performing a safe delivery
• Failure to perform a timely cesarean section when medically necessary
Compensation for a Facial Paralysis Birth Injury
A medical malpractice claim for a facial paralysis birth injury can seek various types of compensation, including:
Economic damages: These cover the tangible financial losses associated with the injury, such as medical expenses, ongoing treatment, rehabilitation costs, and lost wages (if parents need to take time off work to care for the child).
Non-Economic damages: These encompass intangible losses like pain and suffering, emotional distress, and the reduced quality of life experienced by the child.
Future damages: Since facial paralysis birth injuries may require long-term care and ongoing medical treatment, you may also be entitled to compensation for future medical expenses and long-term care needs. Specific circumstances may warrant additional compensation, such as expenses for adaptive equipment, assistive technology, or home modifications to accommodate the child’s needs, and loss of earnings of the child in the future.
Contacting a Birth Injury Lawyer
As New York personal injury lawyers, we have seen instances of facial paralysis birth injuries that occur due to medical negligence (carelessness) during labor and delivery at New York City Health and Hospital Corporation facilities. It is the responsibility of medical professionals to monitor the condition of the fetus and the mother and make decisions that reduce or eliminate a risky delivery.
The experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you. One of our clients secured a $2,850,000 verdict in an Erb’s palsy (brachial plexus palsy) case that was reduced by the appeals court to $1,846,000 because the verdict was so large. This was the highest amount upheld by the appellate (appeals) courts for many, many years. In addition, we recovered $1,400,000 for a newborn who lost motion in the arm during birth due to doctors applying incorrect force on the baby’s head. One of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
The following list identifies some of these hospitals (operated by New York City Health and Hospital Corporation):
• Jacobi Hospital aka Bronx Municipal 1400 Pelham Parkway South Bronx, New York 10461 718-918-5000
• Lincoln Hospital 234 East 149th Street Bronx, New York 10451 718-579-5000
• North Central Bronx Hospital 3424 Kossuth Avenue Bronx, New York 10467 718-519-5000
• Coney Island Hospital 2601 Ocean Parkway Brooklyn, New York 11235 718-616-3000
• Kings County Hospital 451 Clarkson Avenue Brooklyn, New York 11203 718-245-3131
• Woodhull Hospital 760 Broadway Brooklyn, New York 11206 718-963-8000
• Bellevue Hospital 462 First Avenue New York, New York 10016 212-562-5555
• Harlem Hospital 506 Lenox Avenue New York, New York 10037 212-939-1000
• Metropolitan Hospital 1901 First Avenue New York, New York 10029 212-423-6262
• Elmhurst Hospital 79-01 Broadway Elmhurst, New York 11373 718-334-4000
• Queens Hospital Center 82-68 164th Street Jamaica, New York 11432 718-883-3000
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury, lead poisoning and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com