Prolonged labor or “failure to progress” is when a mother’s labor lasts longer than
16 to 20 hours. If the child is not born after about 20 hours of regular contractions, the mother is said to be in prolonged labor. Prolonged labor may occur if the baby is too big or stuck and cannot move through the birth canal. It may also happen in cases where babies are in breech position (feet first instead of head first) or if the contractions are too weak.
When the labor continues for such an extended duration, both mother and child may be exposed to risks. It is the responsibility of the delivery doctor and the medical staff to evaluate the associated risks and address them promptly. The baby, in particular, is at risk of severe birth injuries due to oxygen deprivation and other trauma caused by incompetent or inexperienced doctors in their attempt to get the child out. If initial attempts to intervene are not successful, it is important that medical professionals move on to a Cesarean section or C-section. This also helps ensure that the baby is not harmed further or exposed to more risks from the prolonged labor and its effects.
What Causes Prolonged Labor?
Here are some of the most common causes of prolonged labor:
Breech position: If the child is positioned feet first instead of head first, there may be issues that arise and extend the labor. In addition, when the baby is in breech position, there is an increased risk of other birth injuries that occur, especially with the misuse of extraction tools such as forceps.
Cephalopelvic disproportion: CPD occurs when the mother’s pelvis is too small given the size of the fetus. If the baby is too big, this size mismatch can cause labor to slow down or completely stop, which may put the baby at risk of serious birth injuries.
Maternal obesity: Higher body mass index in the mother has been correlated in studies with a longer first stage of labor as well as other complications in pregnancy.
Issues with uterine contractions: When contractions are not strong enough to push the baby out, labor can be prolonged. Issues with uterine contractions might arise because of pregnancy with multiple babies, excessive use of anesthesia or painkillers, etc.
Symptoms and Complications of Prolonged Labor
Some of the signs or symptoms of prolonged labor include:
• Labor that extends for more than 16 to 20 hours
• When the mother is exceedingly tired or in distress
• When the mother becomes dehydrated
• Body pain, particularly in the back and sides of the body
• Muscle fatigue causing decrease in labor pains.
• High pulse rate because of the stress and exhaustion
• Fetal distress including changes in baby’s heart rate
When labor is slow to progress, there are significant risks for mother and child. It is absolutely critical for medical professionals to act quickly to prevent serious, long-term damage. Fetal distress may occur because of oxygen deprivation. Inappropriate or incompetent use of forceps or vacuum extractors may result in trauma such as brain injuries. Long-term risks of the baby developing permanent injuries such as brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy), cerebral palsy or hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) increase significantly.
When a vaginal delivery puts mother or child at risk, a C-section should be performed. If labor fails to accelerate or if the baby goes into distress, an emergency C-section should be performed. Failure to perform a C-section in a timely manner amounts to medical negligence (carelessness) and may become grounds for a medical malpractice or birth injury lawsuit.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If your child has suffered birth injuries as a result of medical negligence (carelessness), 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. In an Erb’s palsy (brachial plexus palsy) case, one of our clients secured a $2,850,000 verdict 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. Also, 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.
We have seen many cases where New York City Health and Hospital Corporation facilities deliver babies who are born with cerebral palsy or brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) that resulted from negligence (carelessness), and/or medical malpractice that happened during the labor and delivery etc. of the children.
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 and/or medical malpractice 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:
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