Birth Injury Due to Uterine Rupture
Lawsuit Against Baylor Scott & White Medical Center | December 15, 2020
On December 15, 2020, WVFK&N attorney Keith Forman filed a medical malpractice claim on behalf of a child who suffered an avoidable brain injury.
The complaint alleges that the child’s mother presented to Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Irving due to complaints of abdominal pain. Shortly after her arrival at the hospital she was admitted to the OB Triage unit. Electronic fetal heart rate monitoring was initiated. Initial interpretation of the fetal heart rate tracing was reported as overall reassuring, indicating that the fetus, more likely than not, was neurologically intact in utero. The mother was at 33 weeks’ and 1-day gestation based on prior ultrasound assessment. The nurse documented that the mother’s obstetrical history was significant for preterm labor/PROM and placenta previa/abruption and also reported that the mother’s chief complaint was 10/10 pain associated with contractions and cramping of her abdomen, back and perineum. During the initial evaluation, the mother was described as “anxious,” “thrashing,” “panicky,” and “crying.” She was also vomiting. Due to continued nausea and vomiting, a nurse paged for the doctor who, at this time, had yet to present to the bedside to evaluate the mother. The mother continued to report unresolved 10/10 abdominal pain. After more than two hours following the mother’s initial presentation, the doctor presented to the bedside to perform her initial assessment and history and physical evaluation. The mother continued to report 10/10 pain with contractions which were associated with “panicked activity” and “thrashing in bed.” Despite the persistence and severity of the mother’s complaints and her known cesarean history, the doctor’s plan was admission for concerns of preterm labor, betamethasone, and magnesium sulfate. Soon thereafter, there was a loss of connectivity with the fetal heart rate monitoring. The nurse was able to re-establish the fetal heart rate five minutes later, showing the onset of a terminal bradycardia. During this time, the mother reported that the “pain isn’t stopping.” Following multiple failed attempts at intrauterine resuscitative measures to improve fetal status, a cesarean section delivery was ordered. After initiating surgical delivery, the doctor recognized the presence of a uterine rupture noting both the baby and the placenta were “entirely in the abdomen” with “significant blood” pooling. At the time of birth, the baby was flaccid without respiratory effort and her color was noted as “blue/pale.” During her NICU admission to Baylor University Medical Center, initial head ultrasound studies showed findings consistent with the sequela of severe hypoxic-ischemic brain damage. Laboratory results further confirmed the presence of multisystem organ dysfunction and an MRI study showed abnormal signal intensity in the deep gray matter areas of the baby’s brain consistent with the residual findings of a hypoxic-ischemic insult.
The lawsuit alleges that the baby suffers from global developmental delays and cerebral palsy among other permanent injuries and damages as a result of the negligence of Baylor Scott & White Medical Center – Irving and its agents.
The action is pending in the District Court of Dallas County, Texas.
