Finding out that your child was injured at birth is devastating. All too often, such injuries could have been prevented by more cautious attention and treatment from your care providers during pregnancy and/or birth. Our Bronx medical malpractice lawyers want to help.

If your child suffered an unnecessary injury, a Bronx birth injury lawyer from Oresky & Associates, PLLC will help you seek justice by holding the liable parties accountable and making them pay compensation for your family’s losses.

Your Trusted Birth Injury Attorneys in the Bronx

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), birth injuries were among the top ten causes of infant mortality in the United States in 2022. Page 5 of their report shows that:

  • Over 1,200 infants died because of pregnancy complications.
  • Other complications (e.g., involving the placenta) led to 649 deaths.
  • Respiratory distress, hypoxia, and asphyxia resulted in a combined 817 deaths.

Our birth injury attorneys in the Bronx will pursue a legal case against anyone who caused your child’s fatal or nonfatal injuries. While you focus on taking care of your family, we will protect your future.

What Compensation Is Available for Birth Injuries in the Bronx?

You may be entitled to a combination of economic and non-economic damages after a birth injury. Non-economic damages refer to physical and emotional losses, including:

  • Past and future pain and suffering
  • Reduced quality of life
  • Disability

Economic damages refer to financial losses, including:

  • Medical expenses
  • Loss of wages
  • Educational or care services your child only needs due to their birth injury

You have the right to pursue as much money as you need to make your child comfortable and rebuild your family’s lives.

How Do I Prove My Child’s Birth Injury Case?

Enough evidence must be collected to show that your medical provider failed in their duty to administer competent care to you and/or your child, and that this failure has negatively impacted their physical or mental well being. Evidence may include:

  • Statements from medical experts
  • An official diagnosis of your child’s condition
  • Relevant bills and receipts
  • Witness statements
  • Prior complaints or legal actions filed against the provider

Building a case is a time-consuming task. Oresky & Associates, PLLC is here to advocate for injury victims like you. Our birth injuries lawyers in the Bronx will put together your case file and work with you to ensure we pursue all of the compensation you are entitled to.

Who Can Be Held Accountable for My Child’s Birth Injury?

As part of our investigation, our firm will determine whose negligence caused or contributed to your child’s injury. This could be a(n):

  • General practitioner
  • Surgeon
  • Nurse

In some cases, multiple parties share responsibility. We will confront all of them and make sure each party pays for their negligence.

Types of Injuries During or After Birth

Birth injuries take many forms. Our Bronx birth injury attorneys are equipped to handle cases involving:

Injuries to the Child

Healthcare providers must pay close attention to the child’s health during and immediately after birth. Negligent care could lead to:

  • Lack of blood flow
  • Injuries inflicted by equipment like forceps
  • Palsies

Injuries to the Parent

Proper care during pregnancy is essential for the health of both the parent and the child. Failure to address pregnancy complications like the following could increase the risk of birth injuries:

  • Preterm labor
  • Prolonged pregnancy or labor
  • Tearing
  • Excessive bleeding
  • Preeclampsia
  • Gestational diabetes
  • Infections

Long-Term Consequences of Birth Injuries

Some children recover from their birth injuries, but those with severe injuries may experience lifelong health problems. For example, the Cleveland Clinic states that permanent brain damage resulting from hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (lack of blood and oxygen) can lead to:

  • Cerebral palsy
  • Developmental and intellectual disabilities
  • Epilepsy
  • Vision problems
  • Hearing problems

In turn, these conditions can lead to physical and emotional difficulties, a shortened lifespan, and a need for increased professional observation and treatment.

What Are the Common Causes of Birth Injuries in the Bronx?

Malpractice plays a role in too many birth injury cases. Medical malpractice happens when the healthcare professional or facility whose care you were under causes or worsens a medical condition because they did not provide the basic standard of care that you are entitled to.

Examples of medical malpractice that could lead to birth injuries include:

Misdiagnosis or Missed Diagnosis

Medical professionals must take patient concerns seriously, run all appropriate tests, and read test results with care. Failure to complete these steps could cause a doctor to diagnose you or your child with the wrong condition or miss signs of a potentially serious condition.

Incorrect Treatment

Treatment that helps one patient may be harmful to another. Providers must assess each patient’s situation, including preexisting conditions, to determine how best to keep them safe and healthy.

Lack of Action

The providers tending to you before, during, and after birth should be familiar with signs of distress in both parent and child. If they do not notice these signs or refuse to take action, you and your child may suffer unnecessarily.

Symptoms of Birth Injury to Look Out For

The symptoms your child experiences will depend on the kind of injury they suffered and how severe the injury is. Immediate signs of a birth injury often include:

  • Muscle abnormalities
  • Bluish skin tone
  • Lack of response to external stimuli (e.g., touch)
  • Breathing problems
  • Feeding problems
  • Seizures

Birth injury symptoms could also appear weeks, months, or years after the fact. Delayed birth injury symptoms may include:

  • Not walking, talking, sitting, or standing in ways appropriate to the child’s age level
  • Trouble concentrating
  • Trouble controlling movements

It is your provider’s job to monitor you and your child for these symptoms and to take swift action in response. If they did not do so, tell one of our birth injury lawyers in the Bronx immediately.

What Is the Time Limit for Birth Injury Cases in the Bronx?

Under CPLR 214-A, you have two and a half years to file a medical malpractice lawsuit against negligent providers. This deadline starts counting down from:

  • The date the birth injury occurred, or
  • The date you or your child stopped receiving “continuous treatment” for the birth injury