Fetal Hypoxia Lawyer (Fetal Distress)
Oxygen deprivation, known as fetal hypoxia or fetal distress, may occur for a variety of reasons during labor and delivery including prolonged labor or a slipped umbilical cord that interferes with the infant’s oxygen supply. When your baby does not receive sufficient oxygen, a myriad of physiological problems can result including significant brain injury and cerebral palsy.
Doctors and nurses typically use a fetal monitor to track changes in your baby’s heart rate and breathing that can signal fetal distress. However, when distress has been recognized and steps aren’t taken to prevent further oxygen deprivation, such as performing a cesarean section, serious injuries can result.
Meconium Aspiration Syndrome (MAS)
Meconium Aspiration Syndrome (MAS) is often linked to fetal hypoxia. The distress an infant undergoes during fetal hypoxia can cause meconium, the infant’s first intestinal discharge, to pass into the amniotic fluid. When the infant inhales (aspirates) this meconium-stained fluid, a host of complications associate with MAS can develop, including airway blockages, lung irritation, and an increased risk of infection.
If you were told that your baby was showing signs of distress, had a slower than normal heart rate, or that meconium stool was present during labor or delivery, your baby may have suffered fetal hypoxia. By reviewing the circumstances of your baby’s birth, our Pittsburgh birth injury attorneys and medical malpractice attorneys can help determine if a doctor, nurse, or other medical professional was to blame for your child’s injury.
Consulting with a Birth Injury Attorney: Fetal Hypoxia
If you are unsure whether or not your child has suffered from fetal hypoxia or another birth injury, please contact our Pittsburgh office to speak with our birth injury attorneys about your case. Unlike many medical malpractice issues, birth injuries do not have the same statutes of limitations. Often, it is when a child hits school age that the effects of their birth injury emerge.
Because of our resources and experience, our birth injury attorneys can efficiently investigate the birth of your child and effectively determine if your child's injury is the result of medical malpractice.