April 28th, 2010
An Illinois family has agreed to a $9.5M medical malpractice settlement after mediation with an Illinois hospital, nurse midwife and the nurse’s employer after she claimed that her son’s birth injury, resulting in cerebral palsy, was caused by negligence.
The woman filed a cerebral palsy lawsuit claiming her son was deprived of oxygen during the birth process which caused a brain injury. According to her lawsuit, the nurse midwife was required to have a sponsoring physician on call but her sponsoring physician was away and she did not call another physician in to the case.
The child, who is now 14, has a permanent disability which requires lifetime care. In the settlement, the hospital has greed to pay $7.5 million. The doctor and midwife will each pay $1 million as part of the settlement.
Cerebral palsy can be caused by the lack of oxygen at birth which can cause permanent disabilities including seizures, blindness, mental retardation and physical impairments.
Tags: Cerebral Palsy, cerebral palsy lawsuit, medical malpractice
Posted in
Birth Defects, Cerebral Palsy |
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March 27th, 2010
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is advising parents and caregivers to be cautious when using infant slings for babies younger than four months of age.
In researching incident reports from the past 20 years, CPSC identified and is investigating at least 14 deaths associated with sling-style infant carriers, including three in 2009. Twelve of the deaths involved babies younger than four months of age.
Three baby deaths could be traced to Infantino baby slings. In response, the CPSC has recalled more than 1 million slings.
Slings can pose two different types of suffocation hazards to babies. In the first few months of life, babies cannot control their heads because of weak neck muscles. The sling’s fabric can press against an infant’s nose and mouth, blocking the baby’s breathing and rapidly suffocating a baby within a minute or two. Additionally, where a sling keeps the infant in a curled position bending the chin toward the chest, the airways can be restricted, limiting the oxygen supply. The baby will not be able to cry for help and can slowly suffocate.
Many of the babies who died in slings were either a low birth weight twin, were born prematurely, or had breathing issues such as a cold. Therefore, CPSC urges parents of preemies, twins, babies in fragile health and those with low weight to use extra care and consult their pediatricians about using slings.
Two months ago, the Commission added slings to the list of durable infant products that require a mandatory standard. Additionally, CPSC staff is actively investigating these products to determine what additional action may be appropriate. Until a mandatory standard is developed, CPSC is working with ASTM International to quickly complete an effective voluntary standard for infant sling carriers.
CPSC recommends that parents and caregivers make sure the infant’s face is not covered and is visible at all times to the sling’s wearer. If nursing the baby in a sling, change the baby’s position after feeding so the baby’s head is facing up and is clear of the sling and the mother’s body. Parents and caregivers should be vigilant about frequently checking their baby in a sling.
CPSC is interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are directly related to infant slings. You can do this by visiting www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx or call CPSC’s Hotline at (800) 638-2772.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Tags: baby, baby sling
Posted in
Brain Damage, recall |
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January 13th, 2010
Wal-Mart and Claire’s have pulled Chinese-made children’s jewelry suspected to have been made with cadmium.
The decision to two of American’s largest retailers of costume jewelry comes on the heels of an investigation by the Associated Press which found some products contained dangerous levels of the toxic metal.
Lab tests conducted for the AP on 103 pieces of low-priced children’s jewelry on sale in the U.S. found 12 items with elevated levels of cadmium, which can hinder brain development in young children, according to recent research, and is known to cause cancer.
Twelve items had cadmium levels of at least 10 percent by weight. One piece had 91 percent, and others contained more than 80%. The government has no restrictions on cadmium in jewelry.
The findings of cadmium contamination come on the heels of a string of product quality scandals in 2007 that caused Congress in 2008 to ban toys and other kids products that contain lead — another dangerous and once commonly used material. Cadmium is even more harmful.
Posted in
Brain Damage, recall |
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