Birth Injury Due to Failure to Timely Deliver
Lawsuit Against Midtown Medical Center | September 18, 2020
On September 18, 2020, WVFK&N attorneys Mary Koch and Robert Lewis filed a medical malpractice claim on behalf of a minor child who suffered a brain injury due to a failure to deliver in the face of non-reassuring fetal heart rate tracings.
The complaint alleges that on September 22, 2018 at 7:53 p.m., the child’s mother presented to Midtown Medical Center with complaints of decreased fetal movement and sharp abdominal pain at 38 weeks and 2 days’ gestation. The tocodynamometer and electronic fetal monitoring (“EFM”) were connected at 7:56 p.m. At 10:06 p.m., the EFM demonstrated minimal variability and variable decelerations. Induction was initiated at 10:25 p.m. The EFM continued to show non-reassuring signs of fetal distress and fetal asphyxia for several hours. During this time period, intrauterine resuscitative measures were administered in an effort to improve fetal oxygenation, however, the fetal heart rate tracings remained ominous. At 05:14, the order was given for a cesarean section delivery. The child was born at 5:55 a.m. on September 23, 2018. The child’s cord blood gas results revealed metabolic acidosis with a pH of 6.99 and a base excess of -13. Seizure activity, including jerking of the arms and legs and abnormal tongue movement were noted. An MRI on October 1, 2018 revealed abnormal findings consistent with hypoxic-ischemic changes. The child was discharged from the hospital after being in the NICU for over twenty days with a diagnosis of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.
The child’s injuries were a result of the negligence of Midtown Medical Center and its employees. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed to order an earlier cesarean section delivery in the face of non-reassuring fetal heart rate tracings. The child will require significant medical care and treatment for the rest of his life.
The action is pending in the State Court of Muscogee County, Georgia.
