$3,500,000.00: Failure To Diagnose Uterine Hyperstimulation and Hypoxia During Labor and Delivery

This New York birth injury lawsuit was filed by a mother and father against an a number of Utica obstetricians and the labor and delivery hospital.  As to the obstetricians, the complaint alleged obstetrical malpractice, including failure to identify fetal distress over the course of a thirty-eight (38) hour labor and delivery, failure to identify ominous fetal heart rate patterns, and failed to identify hypoxia requiring intervention, e.g., a cesarean section.  As to the hospital, the complaint alleged that its labor and delivery nurses administered Pitocin beyond physician's orders, and improperly increased the administration of Pitocin in the face of late decelerations with slow return to baseline, and filed to diagnose uterine hyperstimulation.

The baby was born birth depressed, with APGARS of 6 at 1 minute and 8 at 5 minutes and an abnormal cord pH.  He received blow-by oxygen int he delivery room before being transported to the NICU where he experienced seizures.  A day one CT can revealed cerebral edema and effacement of the ventricles consistent with birth hypoxia.  Placental pathology revealed meconium staining.  Subsequently, the child was diagnosed with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy, intractable epilepsy, microcephaly, and cortical visual impairment.

After Bottar Law, PLLC retained 7 experts in the fields of obstetrics, certified nurse midwifery, pediatric neurology, placental pathology, vocational rehabilitation, and economics, the case resolved shortly before trial for $3,500,000.00.  As part of the settlement, the child is entitled to lifetime medical care with an estimated value of $36,000,000.00.

Under New York State law, patients and their families have a limited amount of time to pursue legal remedies for losses caused by medical malpractice.  If you wish to speak with Bottar Law, PLLC, our legal team can be reached by telephone, email, or by completing an online contact form.