Common Birth Injuries And Their Symptoms
One of the scariest things that can happen during birth is a birth injury, and if you suspect this has occurred then don’t hesitate to reach out to our Bloomington, IL birth injury lawyer. Birth injuries don’t always show up right away. In fact, many signs and symptoms don’t present themselves directly after childbirth. There are some that can take years to show up, during the developmental stages of your child’s life.
The following list of symptoms are not conclusive of a birth injury, they can help you see if there are signs that one may have happened. These symptoms could be a warning sign that your child has developed a condition related to brain or nerve damage, such as cerebral palsy because of a birth injury. As always if you are worried contact your doctor. It is far better to be overly safe than brush something off that could be serious down the line.
Preventable Injuries
Our Bloomington birth injury attorney can assist you with holding the doctor accountable for a variety of preventable injuries.
- Birth asphyxia: A lack of oxygen due to various issues during labor and delivery.
- Erb’s palsy: Most common in mothers with small birth canals or with big babies that results in the baby getting stuck during delivery, causing nerve damage that results in paralysis in the arms.
- Infections transmitted by mother: Doctors should know the complete health of the mother to avoid transmitting infections from her to the baby during delivery.
- Fractures: Skull and clavicle fractures should not happen to a baby during delivery, but they may if the doctor does not control delivery and make good decisions based on known information.
- Cerebral palsy: Sometimes caused by a preventable infection in the mother prior to birth or mistakes made during delivery that impacts brain development.
Immediate Symptoms of Birth Injuries
Birth injuries can manifest through multiple symptoms. While these symptoms do not necessarily indicate a birth injury, it is wise to contact your doctor to ensure the health of your child. Two of the most obvious signs a birth injury has happened are if there are seizures or skull fractures. These pose a serious threat to your child’s health and if left untreated can cause permanent brain damage. Other symptoms include:
- Arched back while crying
- Difficulty suckling, eating, or swallowing
- Excessive drooling
- Hand curled into a claw-like shape
- Low heart rate
- Low oxygen levels
- Loose or stiff muscles
- Severe sensitivity to light
- Weak reflexes
Symptoms of a Birth Injury After a Year Old
Not all birth injuries are caught right after delivery, and some are only noticed as the child grows older. As your child grows older symptoms start to show in missing important developmental milestones or physical signs. Those are as follows:
- Blindness, deafness, or muteness
- Delay in speech development or comprehension
- Difficulty eating, drinking, or grasping utensils
- Difficulty walking or crawling
- Difficulty sitting, standing, walking, or crawling without assistance
- Lack of muscle control
- Loss of bodily movements
- Intellectual disabilities like low memory retention
- Poor hand-mouth coordination
- Poor hand-eye coordination
- Stiff muscles
- Tremors or shaking
Contact Our Birth Injury Lawyer Today
If your child is displaying any of these symptoms it is best to consult your doctor to know what is going on. From there you will want to figure out if these symptoms could be from a birth injury or not. If they are, then talking our birth injury lawyer is in your best interest.
No one wants to go through the process of dealing with what happens after a birth injury. It is an emotional time and you shouldn’t have to fight the battle alone. If you or someone you love is dealing with a birth injury then don’t hesitate to reach out to Piloletti Pioletti & Nichols for a compassionate birth injury lawyer in Bloomington, IL who knows the laws and understands how difficult this can be.