Birth injuries can be quite common in infants after delivery. Most often complications arise due to the size, position, stage of development of the fetus, or the mother’s own physical limitations. Sometimes injuries can also occur if a baby is mishandled during the delivery by a doctor or his team.
One of the most common birth injuries in Florida are broken bones. The most common of these are injuries to the collar bone. If infants go home from the hospital with broken bones, they could possibly be experiencing pain that they cannot communicate to a new parent. Some of the warning signs of a broken bone might include:
- Bruising
- Tenderness to touch
- Increased pain in one spot
- Increased pain with movement
- Unwilling to move much
- A limb that appears out of position
- General discomfort and cannot be soothed
If these symptoms are apparent, it is important to take the baby in to see the doctor to ensure that any injury is properly treated. A doctor will diagnose the extent of the injury to determine what needs to be done. Sometimes broken bones do heal on their own, because a baby’s bones are still soft and pliable. The bones heal generally in just a short period of time, so if an injury does persist it can be serious and need medical treatment.
Birth injuries, like broken bones, do occur as a result of negligence in the delivery room, such as too much force used or a lack of attention to the baby’s position in the birth canal. If your baby was injured through medical negligence, we can help. We are experienced in birth injury cases, and we understand as parents of three children ourselves.
5 Most Preventable Birth Injuries In this month’s Florida Injury Report, we look at the five most preventable Fort Lauderdale birth injuries. [powerpress]
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