While the use of forceps and vacuum extractors during childbirth can be necessary in some cases, these tools can also cause serious birth injuries when used improperly. As a result, if you are concerned that your newborn may have suffered injuries during childbirth as a result of your doctor using one of these tools, you should seek appropriate medical care for your newborn promptly.
You should also talk to a birth injury lawyer about your family’s legal rights.
Unfortunately, birth injuries caused by improper use of forceps and vacuum extractors are much more common than they should be. When these birth injuries could—and should—have been avoided, families have clear legal rights under Illinois law. An experienced birth injury lawyer will be able to explain your family’s legal rights; and, if warranted, take legal action for your family.
Doctors typically use forceps during childbirth when either: (i) the baby is facing the wrong way in the birth canal; or, (ii) labor has stalled with potential health implications for the mother or the baby. While using forceps can be appropriate when necessary, doctors must be careful not to cause physical trauma.
Babies are uniquely vulnerable to trauma during labor and delivery. As a result, even minor errors when using forceps can have serious—and potentially life-altering—consequences. Common signs of potentially dangerous birth injuries caused by the improper use of forceps include:
All of these are signs that you should seek a diagnosis for your newborn. While some forceps-related injuries can heal without further complications, others can lead to permanent scarring or cognitive impairments. When you seek a diagnosis for your newborn, you should be sure to mention your concerns about your delivery doctor’s use of forceps, and you should be sure that you have a clear understanding of your newborn’s immediate and long-term treatment needs.
Instead of using forceps, in some cases doctors will use vacuum extractors to help childbirth progress. While some studies have found that using a vacuum extractor can mitigate the risk of birth trauma compared to using forceps, vacuum extractors still present a variety of potential risks for both the mother and the baby.
In fact, the risk of certain birth injuries is reported to be greater with vacuum extractors. This includes the risk of cephalohematoma, which can lead to a variety of life-altering, and potentially fatal, complications. Signs of birth injuries caused by the improper use of a vacuum extractor during childbirth include:
As you can see, many of the injury risks associated with the use of forceps and vacuum extractors are similar. Importantly, the warning signs discussed above can potentially be symptomatic of injuries from other causes as well. This makes it imperative to ensure that you receive an accurate diagnosis—both for protecting your newborn’s health and for protecting your family’s legal rights.
If your family has a birth injury claim related to the use of forceps or a vacuum extractor during your newborn’s birth, you will need to be able to prove that your family’s delivery doctor failed to meet the requisite standard of care in using one of these tools improperly. Proving the improper use of forceps or a vacuum extractor requires knowledge of both the relevant medical standards and the relevant principles of medical malpractice.
When you hire a birth injury lawyer to represent your family, your family’s lawyer will engage a medical expert to examine the circumstances surrounding your baby’s birth. If this expert determines that your family’s delivery doctor failed to meet the requisite standard of care, he or she will then prepare a report that your family’s lawyer can use to pursue a medical malpractice claim on your family’s behalf.
If your child’s injuries were caused by improper use of forceps or a vacuum extractor, you don’t have to face this battle alone. The attorneys at Coplan + Crane understand what families endure in these situations and bring decades of knowledge in medical malpractice claims to fight for justice.
Do you need to know more about pursuing a medical malpractice claim related to the improper use of forceps or a vacuum extractor? If so, we invite you to get in touch.
Contact Coplan + Crane today online or at (312) 982-0588 for a FREE case evaluation. We help clients across Illinois, including Chicago, Oak Park, Rockford, and other areas.
