According to the Asher family, the on-call OBGYN Specialist at their daughter’s delivery should have recognized that her shoulder was stuck behind her mother’s pelvic bone. Recognizing the problem, he should have recommended a caesarian section or attempted to free the shoulder. Instead, he went ahead with the delivery, using “excessive traction” to free the child. Injuries to the left arm became apparent immediately after delivery.

The mistakes during delivery resulted in the girl having permanent injuries to the brachial plexus, a network of nerves that start in the spinal cord and control movements in the shoulder, arm and hand. Injuries like this are most common in sports and during childbirth, often leaving the arm without any function. The daughter of the Asher family will have limited use of her left arm.

The trial ended in a substantial settlement. Of the $1.314 million, $550,000 is for loss of future earnings, $380,000 for loss of full mind and body, $258,000 for pain and suffering and $63,000 is for each parent for loss of childhood consortium.

Cappolion Dodd Krebs, LLP – birth trauma lawyers

A ritual is performed by Gliding Stars students each time they go on the ice. Each skater is escorted by one or two volunteers as they form a straight line in the center of the rink. Some can stand independently; some require walkers or arm braces. When the skating instructor gives the cue, they chant: “Can we skate? Yes we can!”

This spirit is shared by all gliding student stars, including Bryson Sparrin, a 6-year-old boy with cerebral palsy. Getting on the ice and skating, Bryson is able to feel like other boys his age. Using a sliding walker created out of plastic pipes, he is pushed along by his older sister, smiling the entire time.

Skating provides multiple benefits of disabled children. Physically, it helps strengthen muscles and improve stability. Children who are otherwise confined to wheelchairs or have limited ability to walk get a sense of freedom they could not otherwise achieve. Emotionally, they get to make friends through the program, boosting their self-esteem.

Children like Bryson get a lot out of the Gliding Stars program. We hope it continues to expand, offering its services to more children throughout the country.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs, LLP – cerebral palsy attorneys

Daniel D’Attilo was born eight years ago after a delayed delivery. The case filed by his parents in 2005 asserts that Cathy D’Attilo’s amniotic fluid had dropped by half three days before his delivery. Her doctor apparently had this knowledge, yet chose to wait to perform a C-Section. The case also states that the C-Section was performed poorly.

The result of Daniel’s birth injury was brain damage, leading to a diagnosis of severe cerebral palsy. Doctors say he will never be able to speak, hear or walk. He also suffers from seizures.

It took six years for the D’Attilo to receive a verdict.

Of the $58 million the jury awarded, $8 million will go towards Daniel’s medical care. Due to the severity of his condition, he will require full-time care for his entire life. The other $50 million portion is for pain and suffering.

We hope the difficulty of Daniel’s condition will be made a little easier after the jury’s decision in his favor.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs, LLP – birth trauma lawyers

The jury determined that the doctor delivering Chaylee in 2008 inadvertently ripped and ruptured nerves in her left shoulder, making her left arm essentially useless. The lawsuit claims he made two mistakes: His choice to use a vacuum delivery was, in the eyes of some, his first mistake. They say it was unnecessary given the relatively good health of the baby in utero. The other mistake happened when Chaylee became stuck behind her mother’s pelvic bone and the doctor pulled down on her head in an attempt to free her.

An injury like Chaylee’s can severely limit the advancement of the fine motor skills children develop when they are young. For Chaylee, the severity of her birth injury makes it unlikely she will ever have significant use of her arm.

Also considered in the decision was the social stigma that Chaylee will likely face due to her obvious deformity.

Of the $1.8 million award, $1.2 million represents past and future medical bills, as well as potential lost wages. The remaining $600,000 was awarded for pain and suffering.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – birth trauma attorneys

Odin Fortner-Watrous suffers from a rare seizure disorder called West Syndrome, caused by a lack of oxygen he experienced during his first moments in the world.

“He spent four minutes with no oxygen and it caused severe brain trauma, and due to the brain damage the seizures developed,” said Odin’s mother, Shayna Fortner Watrous, telling the story of his birth.

The only treatment option approved in the United States for Odin’s condition, called ACTH, costs $300,000 for a five day supply. Full treatment takes 14 weeks.

“We pay $4,600 out of pocket, per vial,” explains Shayna.

The mother of four was recently diagnosed with stage two breast cancer.

Odin’s father, Arthur, says that every dollar he makes is going towards paying for the medication.

Family and friends are donating household supplies and everyday items to the family. Country singer Landon Parker is performing an online benefit concert on February 4. A Facebook page has been created for the event.

“It gives us the opportunity to test just how strong we can be,” said Arthur.

Shayna says the treatment is already having a positive effect. Hopefully, with the help of the community, the family can complete the treatment and give Odin a better life.

Donations can be sent to:

Shayla Fortner-Watrous

13 Vine Street

Bingham, New York 13901

The family requests that if you do make a donation, please put Odin’s Journey in the memo and include your name and address so they can thank you.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs, LLP – birth trauma lawyers

Susan Pfeiffer, from the University of Toronto in Canada, has found an example of stress injury to the pelvis in the skeleton of a 2000-year-old female found in South Africa.

According to newscientist.com, humans are unique among hominids in having a birth canal that is nearly identical in size to the neonatal head. This means that it is inevitable that natural variations will cause some women to have a pelvis that is too small for childbirth.

The skeleton examined by Pfeiffer had an unusually narrow pelvis, which she said appears to have led to an injury to the pubic symphysis, a joint running down the midline of the pelvis, during childbirth.

“Resulting deterioration of her joints probably caused a lot of pain, yet she stayed active,” said Pfeiffer. “This suggests that her group had knowledge of pain-numbing substances.”

Jeremy DeSilva, from Boston University, estimates that childbirth first became difficult around 4 million years ago.

We are fortunate that with modern medicine and an alert medical staff, a narrow pelvis does not mean birth trauma is inevitable.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – birth trauma attorneys

The project is the work of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association Keystone obstetrics department. Implementing changes in Michigan hospital birthing procedures, it discourages elective or C-section births unless it is for medically necessary reasons. These include situations such as chronic disease, a mother carrying multiple babies or if the baby is small and developing slowly.

With about 65 hospitals participating, almost every birthing center in the state is on board.

The main emphasis of the project is education. It attempts to show women the advantages of waiting for natural birth, and eliminates many C-section births with the use of labor-inducing drugs after the 39^th week as well as pain-relieving drugs and counseling during labor.

From March 2010 to March 2011, elective C-sections before the 39^th week dropped from 24 percent to 6 percent, and the use of labor-inducing drugs dropped from 20 percent to 7 percent.

Dr. Charles Cash, the one who initiated the program, says he hopes to lower the national percentage of overall C-section births from 32 percent to 17 percent.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – birth trauma lawyers

Aaron Edwards was born at the Lee Memorial Health System in Florida in 1997. A jury determined in 2007 that Lee Memorial was negligent and failed to follow standard hospital rules and regulations, awarding the young victim $30.8 million.

Four years later, the family has been unable to collect the money.

The medical institution, a governmental entity, must have its claims reviewed by the Florida legislature before payments are made.

“It has become common practice with this Florida legislature to just sit on these claims bills so that they are rarely concluded,” said Edwards’ attorneys.

“My Christmas wish this year is for the state of Florida to give me a fair hearing so that we can have the money for my  injuries that the court said we should have,” Edwards wrote, using a rudimentary communications board over a three week period.

We hope he gets his wish.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – birth trauma attorneys

The study, published in the Dec. 7 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, shows that the current guidelines, which suggest prenatal steroids be administered to women who are at risk for delivering between the 24^th and 34^th week of pregnancy, can be expanded to the 23^rd week.

The steroids help the infants with lung development, which increases the odds of survival and reduces the risk of brain injury.

Dr. Wally Carlo, director of the division of neonatology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, authored the newly published study.

“When given as early as 23 weeks, prenatal or antenatal steroids reduce an infant’s risk of death and important developmental issues,” said Dr. Carlo.

Currently there is an absence of clear guidelines directing the use of prenatal steroids. According to the study, about 40 percent of women who showed signs of preterm labor at 23 weeks were not treated with steroids.

“There is a huge potential to increase the use of prenatal steroids,” said Dr. Carlo. “Mothers need to know that there is a lot that physicians can do to improve the outcome for these babies.”

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP – birth injury attorneys

C-sections are being performed in around one-third of all births, according to 2007 statistics. That is compared to 21 percent a decade before. Vacuums are being used far more frequently in difficult births as well.

The reason for the increase in the use of methods other than forceps in difficult births is not easy to determine, as statistics do not show that these other methods are safer, according to Dr. Erika F. Werner, at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Dr. Werner is the head of a study using data on more than 400,000 births to first-time moms. The study found that those delivered with forceps were 45 percent less likely to suffer a seizure than those born via vacuum pump or C-section.

Seizures at birth are often caused by oxygen deprivation to the brain. This kind of birth trauma can result in permanent damage.

According to Dr. Werner, delivery doctors can typically get to the baby faster with forceps than with the other methods, which may help explain the lessened seizure risk.

Cappolino Dodd Krebbs LLP – birth injury attorneys