Birth defects in the United States are very common and there are thousands of birth defects that can affect the unborn baby. New mothers die every year in the hospital because doctors do not finding abnormalities with newborns and fail to prevent complications for the mother.

All parents want their child to be screened for genetic defect and abnormalities. Ob/Gyn errors are a portion of the total medical malpractice errors every year because birth defects were missed. Some common birth defects will cause a newborn child to have congenital heart disease, spina bifida or Down syndrome to name a few.

Almost 100,000 people, not just mothers die in the hospital due to medical. You can imagine how many expectant mothers are part of that total due to improper care while giving birth. Parents will receive test results after the child is born showing what the defect is, if there is one.

Doctors may mistakenly not diagnose a defect or miss a defect in a screening because it goes undetected. Other times birth defects can be addressed while the child is still in the womb. Parents have the option to terminate the pregnancy if they do not want to go ahead with it because the birth defect that was found is determined to be serious. Parents will be unable to make a decision to terminate the pregnancy if the doctor did not find a defect during a screening.
In 2021, over 1,200 mothers died in the United States while giving birth. It is devastating for expecting parents to have a child born with a defect after planning for a happy arrival. A personal injury lawyer in New Mexico can work with you to find out if the doctor’s lack of care caused the defect, or if there wasn’t any negligence on their side.

We will gather evidence and go over medical records to find out the exact reason your child was born with a defect. We utilize a medical expert to demonstrate how the negligence led to the birth defect in your child. The medical expert will show how the doctor did not live up to standard of care that is expected when a mother is giving birth to a newborn.

Birth defects are not the same as birth injuries. This is because birth injuries happen while the mother is in labor, while a birth defect occurs while the baby is developing in the womb. Birth injuries can happen simply by a doctor prescribing the wrong medication while a mother is in labor.

If you were not informed of a birth defect while your child was due and later passed, you may have a wrongful death claim against the medical practitioner. Such a claim is likely to be stronger if the parents would have been able to make the decision to terminate the pregnancy had they know about the birth injury.

Other birth defects include hip dysplasia, cleft lip, heart defects, blindness, deafness, scoliosis and learning disabilities.

Contact the Brian K Branch Law Firm today with your birth defect claim at 505-207-4401.