$4 Million Verdict: Cerebral Palsy Caused by Failure to Monitor Fetal Heartbeat Says Maryland Jury

According to a report in the Maryland Daily Record, a Frederick County jury has awarded nearly "$4 million to a boy whose family claimed his cerebral palsy was caused by doctors’ failure to monitor the fetal heartbeat when his mother was in the hospital." See the full article: Frederick birth-injury verdict nears $4M

$12 Million Settlement for Birth Injury in Illinois

ROCKFORD, Ill. — According to a Business Wire release, the family of a brain-damaged boy, severely injured during birth, settled its medical malpractice lawsuit against St. Anthony Medical Center in Rockford for $12 million. The settlement is the largest of any personal injury case in Winnebago County.

The child, now 4 years old, has spastic quadriparesis, a form of cerebral palsy. He remains dependent on a ventilator and requires around-the-clock care. According to the lawsuit, hospital staff failed to recognize that baby was positioned for a breech delivery, failed to recognize signs of fetal distress and failed to deliver him by Caesarian section in a timely way. As a result, he did not receive sufficient oxygen during delivery and suffered massive brain damage.

“A failure to communicate accurate information and take appropriate action doomed this child’s future,” said the family's attorney. “The nursing staff assumed – but failed to verify – the fetal presentation. Given the wrong information, [the doctor] accelerated the labor and the child suffered catastrophic injuries.” See more details here...

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South Carolina Jury Awards $4.4 Million in Birth Injury

ROCK HILL, S.C., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- A York County jury on Friday awarded $4.4 million to the parents of a child who suffered a brain injury at birth. The award was against Piedmont Hospital.

The jury said the hospital was at fault when it assigned a nurse trainee to monitor a woman, who arrived three days before her scheduled induction with nausea and vomiting. The nurse misread fetal heart monitoring data showing the baby was in dire distress and needed emergency intervention, according to the plaintiffs.

The baby was born with severe brain injury due to oxygen deprivation and later developed Cerebral Palsy. She died of complications from cerebral palsy, exactly one year, to the day, of the verdict.

"When medical professionals fail to meet reasonable standards of care they need to be held accountable, and the jury agreed with that," said Ken Suggs, of Janet, Jenner & Suggs, Columbia, S.C., attorney for the couple.

Illinois: Cerebral Palsy Lawsuit Settles for $6.5 Million

According to The Beacon News, a $6.5 million settlement has been reached "on behalf of a 7-year-old Aurora, IL, boy who allegedly suffered a brain injury at birth at Provena Mercy Medical Center."

Plaintiffs attorneys claim the attending obstetrician and delivery nurse, "failed to respond to the baby’s low heart rate and reduced oxygen flow caused by the drug Pitocin."

To read more on this case, go to the Beacon News article: Aurora family gets $6.5 million in brain injury case.