Having a baby is very exciting whether it is your very first one or your very last. Babies make everyone smile, and these bundles of joy always bring something into your life that was missing before their arrival. However, giving birth is not without risk, and moms-to-be need to take precautions to avoid birth injuries as much as they can.
What A Mom Can Do
1. Prenatal Care
Women who receive prenatal care early in their pregnancy and continue with that care throughout, have the lowest risk of birth injuries.
2. Watch Weight Gain
Excessive weight gain during pregnancy can lead to high blood pressure and pregnancy onset-diabetes.
3. Folic Acid
Folic acid is an essential vitamin to protect babies from birth defects and potential birth injuries.
4. Exercise
Light exercise throughout the pregnancy keeps the body in shape and ready for delivery.
5. Understand Risks
Older women, women with medical conditions, and first-time moms all run a higher risk for delivery. These risks should be assessed and precautions taken.
Even if none of the above mentioned factors are present, birth injuries can still occur that are no fault of the mother. These injuries, which usually occur during the actual birthing process, are the result of negligence and medical malpractice.
Birth Injuries Occurring During Delivery
1. Asphyxiation
When the oxygen supply is cut off from the baby, brain damage most likely will occur. This usually happens when a timely C-Section is not performed.
2. Skull and Shoulder Damage
This occurs when the medical professionals incorrectly use forceps or suction devices to assist with delivery. Skull damage can lead to permanent disabilities and possible disfiguration.
3. Severe Bruising
Mishandling of the infant during the birth process or thereafter can lead to serious bruising. This can lead to complications very easily in a newborn, including stroke from a blood clot.
4. Broken Limbs
Negligent actions during the delivery can lead to broken arms or legs on a newborn. If these limbs are not set correctly and quickly, it can lead to a lifetime disability.
5. Umbilical Infections
Babies immune systems can be weak after they are born. Infections can lead to breathing difficulties and loss of hearing. The top form of this problem in infants at the hospital is the umbilical infection.
There are also other negligent actions that can occur during a delivery that could harm the mother as well. These injuries are often classified one-in-the-same with birth injuries.
“While some birth injuries are minor and resolve quickly, other injuries like hypoxic or ischemic injury to the fetal brain and mechanical injury to the brachial plexus, may cause permanent cognitive or functional disabilities and global developmental delays that can require lifelong care,” as http://www.bottarlaw.com/ states.
If your newborn has been injured during the birthing process, or if you have been injured giving birth, you should seek the services of a personal injury attorney that has experience in birth injury cases. Your attorney will be able to help you discover what types of compensation you and the baby are entitled to under the law.
Having a baby is always a risk, but it is one well worth taking. Every mom should understand all the possible outcomes, good and bad, of delivery and take all the necessary precautions to have a safe birth experience.
As a mother of two little ones that came from high risk pregnancies, Molly Pearce often writes on the topics of health, human rights, and family life. She knows the value that excellent prenatal medical care held for her and hopes this post will encourage expecting readers to choose doctors carefully and make healthy lifestyle choices.
Leave a Reply