Pittsburgh Birth Injury Lawyers
Strong advocacy when your expectation of a healthy newborn is shattered by medical malpractice
New parents expect their child to be healthy. It’s traumatic to learn your child suffered any type of birth injury. It’s devastating to learn your child’s life may never be normal or they may never fully recover. Doctors should anticipate the difficulties that may occur during the delivery of your newborn. They should know how to respond to emergencies and complications. When the birth and delivery team is negligent, they must be held liable for the injuries their medical malpractice causes.
At Carmody and Ging, Attorneys at Law, our personal injury lawyers understand just how crushing it is to learn your child may suffer from physical, cognitive, and emotional harm – possibly for the rest of their life. Our Pittsburgh birth injury lawyers work with a network of doctors, including obstetricians and surgeons, who demonstrate why your child’s injuries were preventable. We are admired by former clients, and respected by insurance companies and defense lawyers, for our ability to persuasively argue for our clients and our record of impressive settlements and verdicts – including a $4.4 million birth trauma medical malpractice settlement.
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What types of birth injury cases does your Pittsburgh firm handle?
Sadly, not all labor and deliveries go well. Some babies are born with injuries that change their lives forever. Other injuries require long-term medical help to give the baby a chance at a healthy life.
At Carmody and Ging, we work with medical professionals who can verify your child’s injuries, how those injuries will affect his/her life, and the future cost of the medical care to treat and manage the injuries. We represent families and children who have the following birth injuries:
- Cerebral palsy. According to the Cleveland Clinic, cerebral palsy (CP), is due to the immature development of the brain. The condition affects a child’s movement and posture. Complications can include intellectual disabilities, seizures, and problems with hearing and seeing. There is no current cure for CP. Therapy, medications, and surgery may help reduce the symptoms, which include developmental delays, difficulty speaking and swallowing, and changes in muscle tone. CP during the birth of a child is often due to the failure of the physician and delivery room staff to ensure the brain has enough oxygen.
- Erb’s palsy. Erb's Palsy causes muscle weakness in the shoulder or arm, often caused by unnecessary or improper pulling of the baby during the delivery.
- Brachial plexus injury. This birth injury which affects the nerves that send signals from the spinal cord to the arm, hand, and shoulder occurs when the nerves are compressed, stretched, or even torn from the spinal cord. A severe brachial plexus injury can cause paralysis. The injury may be caused when the delivery team uses forceps improperly or performs vacuum extractions improperly. Klumpke’s palsy, which affects the wrist, forehand, and hand, is a type of brachial plexus injury.
- Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). This birth injury occurs when there is a decrease in oxygen to the brain or a decreased blood flow. HIE can cause delays in development, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and cognitive impairment. Sometimes, the problems don’t become apparent until your child develops.
Our Pittsburgh birth injury lawyers also represent newborns when medical malpractice causes:
- Brain ischemia
- Cephalohematoma
- Fetal lacerations
- Kernicterus
- Head and brain injuries
- Meningitis
- Learning disabilities
- Shoulder dystocia
- Seizures
- Skull fractures
- Strokes
- Spinal cord damage
In the most tragic cases, your child dies during the labor and delivery process. Our Pittsburgh attorneys file wrongful death claims against the responsible healthcare professionals. We also represent mothers who suffer injuries during the delivery.
How do birth injuries happen?
Generally, obstetricians and others involved in the delivery of your child must follow accepted standards of competent medical care. These standards are based on various medical reviews, such as state and local medical board requirements and guidelines.
Some of the reasons a birth injury may be due to medical malpractice include:
- Not monitoring the baby’s oxygen
- Improper use of forceps
- Improper vacuum extractions
- Failure to monitor the mother or child’s vital signs
- Failure to perform a C-section or to perform the C-section competently
- Failure to provide medications or failure to provide the correct dosages
- Failure to respond to umbilical cord problems
- Not treating an infection properly or in a timely manner
- Failure to respond to emergencies
- Failure to monitor the baby during and after the delivery
We review what doctors did and didn’t do with medical experts who can demonstrate negligence on the part of your obstetrician or birthing team. Hospitals may also be liable if they failed to properly background check doctors who use their facilities, failed to provide the correct medical tools and equipment, were understaffed, and for other reasons.
Who is liable for my child’s birth injury?
Carmody and Ging is ready to file medical malpractice claims against everyone who is responsible for harm to your newborn or the death of your newborn. Liable parties and defendants may include:
- The obstetrician and other birth delivery doctors
- The healthcare providers responsible for pre-delivery care of post-delivery care
- The anesthesiologists
- The hospital where the delivery was performed
- Midwives
- Paramedics
- Medical technicians
- Other responsible parties
What is the value of my Pittsburgh birth injury claim?
We understand. There are no do-overs. No compensation can make your newborn’s injuries disappear. Our goal is to secure all the resources your child deserves to maximize his/her chance at the best life possible.
Our Pittsburgh injury lawyers seek compensation for your child’s:
- Medical expenses – often for a lifetime
- Lifetime of physical pain and emotional suffering
- The loss of function of any body part
- Damage to cognitive development
- Scarring and disfigurement
Normally, the settlement or verdict proceeds are placed into a trust or annuity, so the funds are there when your child needs them.
Do you have a birth injury lawyer near me?
Carmody and Ging is located at 801 Vinial Street in Pittsburgh, on the 3rd floor of the Deutschtown Center building. We’re right across the road from Penn Brewery. You should be able to find a parking spot onsite. If your car is still in the shop or you don’t have a car, there’s a bus stop on Troy Hill Road, around the corner. If you’re not mobile or in ill health, we provide alternatives. We can talk by video conference if needed. We also will meet clients away from the office if necessary.
Our lawyers understand it’s devastating to learn that your child may not have the life you’d hoped for. We have the experience and resources to answer your questions and guide you through the claims process. We’ll help you and your newborn heal.
Speak with our persuasive Pittsburgh birth injury lawyers today
At Carmody and Ging, we handle the tough cases, the complex cases, and the cases other lawyers find too hard. Our lawyers are connected to the Pittsburgh community and to the families that live here. We fight to obtain settlements and verdicts that hold negligent doctors accountable and provide the funds you need to help your child live his/her best life possible. To schedule a free consultation with a seasoned Pittsburgh birth injury lawyer, please call 412.281.2929 or fill out our contact form. We help families start again.
