My daughter was born in Memphis Tennessee with the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck and she was not breathing properly. She was in intensive care for several weeks. Was this the result of medical malpractice?

Many people mistakenly believe that when the umbilical cord gets wrapped around the baby’s neck in the womb that the cord is cutting off oxygen by choking the baby. This is not correct, as unborn babies do not get oxygen by breathing like you and I. Babies get oxygen through oxygen rich blood that is passed from the placenta, through the umbilical cord, and into the baby’s own blood stream. Any disruption in blood flow in the umbilical cord can cause a decrease in oxygen to the baby. If the decrease in oxygen is prolonged, it may lead to permanent brain damage. This is known as perinatal asphyxia.

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One of the ways that oxygen flow can be affected is when the umbilical cord gets twisted or impinged upon. When this occurs, it does not matter whether the twist or impingement occurs around the baby’s neck, or around the babies arm, leg, foot or other body part. The only thing that matters is that the oxygen flow is being disrupted. Often times, but not always, the signs of cord impingement can be recognized by doctors and nurses who are responsible for reviewing the electronic fetal heart monitor for the baby.

Even if the cord impingement could not be detected, there may have been other signs and symptoms that should have alerted the doctors that a C-section should have been performed sooner.

Loss of variability in the baby’s heart rate
Late heart rate decelerations
Repetitive or severe variable heart rate decelerations
Arrest or stopping of labor
Dysfunctional labor pattern
The only way to determine whether medical malpractice occurred in a specific case is to contact an experienced and successful birth injury attorney who will then conduct a review of your case. The review should almost always involve ordering medical records and consulting with an expert physician.

At Greer Injury Lawyers, we have a registered nurse who helps to prepare our cases. Call us at 1-888-470-9143 for a free and confidential case review.