A lawsuit has been filed in Cook County Circuit Court, claiming medical negligence in the case of a baby with Erb’s palsy. The parents are suing the doctors and the hospital where the baby was delivered, saying that they are at fault for the child’s condition.
Alexander and Aracely Colon filed the lawsuit on behalf of their child, Elijah, on November 21, 2011. Saint Joseph Hospital is a defendant in the lawsuit, along with other medical personnel.
According to the lawsuit, Elijah experienced shoulder dystocia during delivery, a situation in which the infant’s head is stuck behind the mother’s pubic bone, and the medical personnel failed to recognize what was happening.
Shoulder dystocia is considered to be a medical emergency, requiring certain medical protocols to be followed in order to ensure a safe delivery, including a Caesarean section, if other maneuvers are unsuccessful.
The lawsuit claims that the defendants deviated from hospital protocol by failing to perform the procedures that would have protected the infant’s health. In addition to claiming that the doctor failed to perform a C-section, the lawsuit also alleges he should not have applied traction to the head and neck of the infant.
The birth injury lawsuit alleges that the traction applied to the infant’s head caused permanent damage to the brachial plexus nerves, and caused him to be afflicted with Erb’s Palsy. The affliction is a permanent condition that causes weakness in the upper arms and hands.
Contact a Chicago medical malpractice attorney and Chicago birth injury lawyer with Briskman Briskman & Greenberg. To learn more call 1.877.595.4878 or visit https://briskmanandbriskman.com/.