New York Medical Malpractice Attorneys

$1,475,000-Settlement Birth Trauma - Failure To Monitor Fetal Heart Rate Hypoxia-Brain Damage

F&F# 87437A

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ATTORNEY - BIRTH TRAUMA- FAILURE TO MONITOR FETAL HEART RATE - HYPOXIA-BRAIN DAMAGE

Settlement: $1,475,000

Injuries:

• Profound mental retardation with motor deficits
• Unable to walk or speak
• Must be fed through a gastrostomy tube

Facts: The infant Pltf. was born by Cesarean section on 9/5/84 at Deft. Hospital with multiple congenital abnormalities including two club feet, a high arched pallet, low set ears; excessive arches on her fingertips, a broad-bridged nose, and micrognathia (an abnormally small jaw). It was suspected that these deformities were caused by trisomy 18, an extra chromosome, but tests indicated that chromosomal karyotypes were normal.

Pltf. was delivered by Cesarean after a Pitocin drip was discontinued because of brow presentation. When the Pitocin was terminated, continuous monitoring of the fetal heart rate was also stopped.

Fitzgerald & Fitzgerald Medical Malpractice law firm contended that fetal heart rate strips indicated a loss of beat-to-beat variability and, therefore Defts., the attending physicians (settled for $1,475,000.), should have continued the monitoring during the 2 hours before the child was born. The firm further argued that the failure to perform adequate monitoring allowed fetal hypoxia to remain undetected. Fitzgerald & Fitzgerald also contended that the Cesarean should have been performed earlier and that Deft. Dr. Kunz (defense verdict) failed to quickly and properly resuscitate the infant.

Pltf. had Apgar scores of 5,5, and 7, as scored by Dr. Kuna, and scores of 1,1, and 2, scored by one of the attending nurses.

Demonstrative evidence: enlargements of medical records and illustrations.