Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)

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Oregon Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy Lawyers - Bend/Portland, OR

Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, also known as HIE, is a catastrophic injury to a newborn child.  This type of birth injury causes brain damage due to a lack of oxygen to the brain (hypoxic).  The lack of oxygen to the brain is caused by a lack of blood flow to the brain (ischemic).  This type of dangerous birth injury occurs to the developing brain, usually during the labor and delivery process.  The damage to the brain causes lesions.  The locations of these lesions dictates what the disability caused may be.  If your loved one has sustained a brain injury during the labor and delivery process, please call our Oregon hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy lawyers to learn what your rights to compensation may be.

This is because, although there are some unavoidable occurrences of HIE, many times hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy is preventable under proper medical care and treatment.  However, reckless, careless, and negligence conduct could results in errors which result in this debilitating and catastrophic birth injury.  Unlike other medical errors and mistakes, HIE is a type of error that has long-lasting ramifications—even if it was only a small or brief mistake.

Causes of Oregon Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy

Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy is caused by a lack of oxygenated blood flow to the brain.  This causes a lack of oxygen to the brain, which begins to cause damage.  There are several possible ways that HIE injuries could be caused.  Many times these injuries are avoidable and preventable, meaning that a child who suffered from HIE is unnecessarily suffering.  Some of the most common causes of HIE include the following:

  • Failure to monitor fetal distress during the labor and delivery process;
  • Umbilical cord rupture or prolapse;
  • Excessive contractions;
  • Improper use of dangerous drugs or medications on the baby;
  • Cord compression;
  • Umbilical cord wrapping around the baby’s neck;
  • Shoulder dystocia or other dangerous head and neck positions;
  • Post-delivery mishandling of the baby; and
  • Many other causes.

Liability of HIE Injuries in Oregon Medical Malpractice Cases

Once a baby has suffered hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy injuries, it is important to establish who is at fault.  There are many possible causes of HIE injuries including natural consequences of the birthing process.  However, anytime a baby suffers from HIE the case should always be reviewed for free by Oregon hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy lawyers to protect your rights.  This is especially true in most hospital settings, as possibly negligent parties will attempt to pass the blame around on other people.

Some of the most commonly liable parties due to hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy injuries include the following:

  • Nursing Staff – When a mother is admitted to a hospital, her frontline health providers are nurses.  These healthcare providers are responsible for ensuring the safety of her and her baby by performing a range of tasks.  One of the most important tasks that every labor and delivery nurse must perform is monitoring.  This is to watch for signs of fetal distress in the infant, but also to protect the mother from complications which could threaten her life of the baby’s life.  Proper monitoring includes checking O2 saturation, blood pressure, pulse, and stress on both the mother and baby.  Nurses also must monitor contractions of the mother because each contraction compresses the cord and provides a lack of oxygenated blood to the baby.  If these contractions are too frequent or too long, the baby may suffer hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.  When a nurse detects abnormalities while monitoring a mother and baby, the nurse must immediately get physician support.
  • Physicians and Doctors – While nurses may be the frontline of labor and delivery, no one is more educated and trained than a physician such as a family care practitioner or an OB-GYN.  Any complications that a mother or baby is experiencing must be handled as a reasonably prudent physician would in similar circumstances.  The failure to provide this competent level of care may result in liability.  One of the most common issues is using improper tools to extract a baby, or excessively using these tools improperly, and delaying a c-section.  In fact, many family care doctors will delay a c-section to ensure that they get credit for the birth of the baby because, if a c-section is ordered, an OB-GYN must perform the surgery and will get credit for the delivery.  Thus, many times doctors may merely be fighting over insurance payments for the delivery of the baby which could result in delayed treatment, substandard treatment, and downright negligent treatment.

Bend/Portland Oregon HIE Lawyers

If you or a loved one have been seriously injured or killed as a result of medical malpractice contact the Oregon Medical Malpractice Lawyers at Kuhlman Law at our number below or fill out the intake form.  We offer a free initial case evaluation and handle cases on a contingency fee which means that you pay no money unless we recover.  

We handle cases throughout the state including Bend and Portland Oregon, Redmond, Central Oregon, Multnomah County, Deschutes County, Salem, Eugene, Corvallis, Lane County, Medford, Gresham, Albany, Medford, Beaverton, Umatilla, Pendleton, and Hillsboro.  

We also have an office in Minneapolis, Minnesota and take medical malpractice cases throughout the Twin Cities, including St. Paul, Hennepin County, Ramsey County, Dakota County, Washington County, Anoka County, Scott County, Blaine, Stillwater, and Saint Paul Minnesota.  

Please act quickly, there is a limited time (Statute of Limitations) in which you can bring a claim under the law.

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For more information on Medical Malpractice and Nursing Home Abuse, please also visit – StoppingMedicalMistakes.com

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