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Phone: 804-644-1400 Fax: 804-225-8706
Plaintiff's Injury Group > Brachial Plexus Birth Injuries
More than 35 verdicts and settlements exceeding one million dollars.

Lewis T. Stoneburner and Wallace B. Wason, Jr. at the Richmond, VA based law firm of Cantor Arkema are experienced in litigating for families who have had suffered a devastating and avoidable brachial plexus injury caused by medical and hospital malpractice.

Almost all brachial plexus, Erb’s Palsy injuries and Klumpke’s Palsy injuries in association with shoulder dystocia at birth are avoidable with the exercise of standard of care by the obstetrician, mid-wife and labor and delivery nurses.

Read more about Erb's Palsy Read more about Klumpke's Palsy Read more about the Types of Brachial Plexus Injuries Read more about Medical Options for Brachial Plexus Injuries

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Proper planning can avoid some injuries
Shoulder dystocia occurs when a baby’s shoulder becomes impacted or lodged in the birth canal on the mother’s bony structures, preventing immediate delivery of the baby. In some instances this obstetrical complication can be totally avoided by a planned cesarean section due to certain pre-disposing risk factors that the obstetrician has a duty to take into account. These factors that may place a mother at high risk for having a shoulder dystocia complication include, for example the following circumstances:
  • A history of prior complications of shoulder dystocia
  • Gestational diabetes
  • Large for gestational age fetus
  • Macrosomia
  • Maternal obesity
  • Excessive fundal height
  • Prior arrest of labor

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Proper care can avoid the other injuries
In the event that this complication develops there are standard of care maneuvers that your obstetrician or mid-wife should implement to safely and atraumatically deliver your baby. These safety procedures include the McRobert’s maneuver, which is simply pushing the mother’s legs further apart by applying pressure at the knees toward the head. Other maneuvers include gentle supra pubic pressure from the side, with avoidance of any pressure between the breasts and the abdomen. The latter pressure is called fundal pressure and is negligent and harmful to your baby. If these safe and simple maneuvers do not dislodge the impacted shoulder then the prudent obstetrician or mid-wife should attempt to rotate the baby using other maneuvers known as the Wood’s or Rubin rotation.

All maternal pushing and pitocin augmentation should be discontinued once shoulder dystocia is encountered. If the operator applies excessive force and traction to the fetal head and shoulders, the baby can be negligently injured by the stretching or avulsion of the brachial plexus nerves. This can result in the complete or partial paralysis of the baby’s shoulder, arm and/or hand.

In those cases where the mother is at high risk for developing shoulder dystocia, the care giver has a standard of care duty to make plans for delivering the baby by C-section. In other cases where shoulder dystocia develops unexpectedly and represents an obstetrical complication, the operator can avoid injuring the baby by using careful and standard measures to safely and atraumatically deliver the impacted shoulder.

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Recovery for injuries caused by medical malpractice
If your baby was injured as the result of a negligently managed labor and delivery, you may have rights to compensation for the injury, including damages for the mother’s suffering of emotional distress, mental anguish and medical costs.

Your child’s claim may include damages for:
  • Pain and suffering
  • Emotional distress and mental anguish
  • Disfigurement and deformity
  • Alteration of activities of daily living
  • Peer ridicule and depression
  • Past and future medical expenses
  • Life care expenses
  • Physical therapy
Health care providers and their medical malpractice carriers routinely deny these claims and take them to court to deflect legal liability and responsibility for their negligence. Experienced counsel is needed to fight for just and complete compensation for the injured child and family.

If you feel that your baby has suffered a birth related injury and wish to bring an action for just compensation, including your claim for emotional damages, please do not hesitate to contact Lewis T. Stoneburner or Wallace B. Wason, Jr. at (804) 644-1400 or fill out our client contact form. Our firm handles other birth related injuries including cerebral palsy, skull fractures, forceps and vacuum extractor injuries and other negligently inflicted injuries to the mother and baby.

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