Intracranial Hemorrhages

Intracranial hemorrhage is bleeding within the skull, and it’s a medical emergency. When a baby suffers from intracranial hemorrhage during the birthing process, he or she may experience paralysis, headache, difficulties with balance or coordination, alteration to consciousness, and even coma. If your child suffered birth injuries due to intracranial hemorrhage and you suspect negligence caused it or occurred in the treatment of it, you can consult the experienced Syracuse medical malpractice attorneys of DeFrancisco & Falgiatano.

Intracranial hemorrhage is bleeding that occurs inside the skull or cranium. It is distinct from bleeding around or inside the brain; this type of bleeding is a cerebral hemorrhage. It is also distinct from hemorrhagic stroke, which is bleeding caused by a ruptured or torn blood vessel in the brain. When there is an intracranial hemorrhage, blood may pool, putting pressure on the brain and depriving it of oxygen. Intracranial hemorrhage can result in stroke, which in turn can damage or kill brain cells.

Often intracranial hemorrhage that is inflicted while a baby is being delivered is because of physical trauma. It can be the result of a baby squeezing through a too-narrow birth canal and the laboring mother’s pelvic bones, which results in compression and skull fractures. Usually, a baby’s skull can endure the pressure in a normal delivery. However, there is a risk of intracranial hemorrhage arising out of these pressures when there is a longer or more difficult delivery. Delivery may be difficult in a way that increases risk when a fetus is larger, or due to cephalopelvic disproportion, a prolapsed umbilical cord, high blood pressure, or the age of the mother. Additionally, when a doctor doesn’t properly deliver a baby, its head can suffer increased compression, resulting in skull fractures, intracranial hemorrhage, and eventually brain damage.

However, there are also other situations that can give rise to intracranial hemorrhage. For example, blood vessels in the brain can develop abnormally during the development of the fetus, and that abnormal development could increase the chances of hemorrhage.

When an infant’s intracranial hemorrhage is the result of actions or omissions by a health care provider, it may be possible to recover damages through a birth injury lawsuit, and a seasoned medical negligence lawyer can help. In order to prevail, you will need to show: (1) you and the baby were owed a professional duty of care by the health care provider, (2) breach of the professional duty of care, (3) causation, and (4) damages. A health care provider might breach the professional duty of care by, for example, improperly using tools like vacuum extraction or forceps, or by allowing labor to continue on too long with the baby stuck in the passage with his or her skull compressed.

You will need to consult with an expert health care provider even before bringing a lawsuit. This consultation will be the subject of a certificate you file with a complaint, assuming there’s a viable claim for birth injuries arising out of medical malpractice. Sometimes it’s also necessary to retain other experts to testify at trial. In addition to medical experts, birth injury cases might necessitate economic and therapy experts to evaluate the losses a baby will suffer over the course of its lifetime as a result of injuries arising out of intracranial hemorrhage.

In some cases, a baby may die as a result of improperly diagnosed or treated intracranial hemorrhage. Parents of a baby that passes away due to medical malpractice may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit to recover damages.

If your baby suffered birth injuries due to intracranial hemorrhage in Syracuse, you may be able to recover compensatory damages. Often medical malpractice claims are difficult to prove and necessitate expert testimony. The lawyers at DeFrancisco & Falgiatano represent babies and families harmed by medical malpractice in Syracuse, Rochester, and throughout Upstate New York, including in Utica, Ithaca, Binghamton, Lowville, Cooperstown, Oneida, Oswego, Auburn, Watertown, Canandaigua, Lyons, Herkimer, Elmira, and Wampsville. Call our firm at 833-200-2000 or contact us via our online form.