Facts on the Common Types of Birth Injuries

It’s always shocking and highly traumatic when new parents learn that their child has been born with a birth injury, from confusion on what caused it and to how to deal with these difficult issues. We’ve helped many parents cope and deal with these injuries, and we’ve found that many times it’s not the parents fault at all, since many times it’s a case of medical malpractice or defective products that has caused their birthing injuries.

The following information is provided to help answer parents most common questions on birth injuries.

#1 Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy is a movement and posture disorder, not a disease. CP is a condition that is the result of damage to the brain. This damage is non-progressive, meaning that the damage will not get worse over time. Although damage doesn’t get worse, without therapy the effect on the muscles could lead to more stiffness or to less muscle tone. CP affects somewhere between two and five children out of every thousand. Each year, 8,000-9,500 babies will be born with CP, and there are 500,000 people in the U.S. with the condition.

If the baby is delivered and has clearly experienced oxygen deprivation, the doctor can still prevent CP, but time is crucial. Every second that passes without the baby having oxygen increases the risk. One way of prevention, although still experimental, is hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

This type of therapy treatment puts the infant in a decompressed chamber full of 100% oxygen, flooding the tissue full of the healing properties of oxygen. Also, it slows down the trauma that the brain is experiencing, pausing and overriding the emergency response of the brain and ultimately lessening or completely eliminating the child’s case of CP.

If your child has had oxygen deprivation and your doctor decides against using hyperbaric oxygen therapy, the disorder of cerebral palsy is the doctor’s fault.

The different types of CP.

No two babies with cerebral palsy are exactly alike. Depending on what portion of the brain was damaged, CP might affect only one side of your child’s body, or it could affect only your child’s arms or legs. Some children with CP are very stiff, while others are loose and floppy.

The specific motor types present in cerebral palsy are classified by the extent, type, and location of a child’s abnormalities.

Spastic: Spastic CP is the most common type. Patients will experience increased muscle tone and their movements may appear stiff or awkward. Different parts of the body can be affected.

• Spastic hemiplegia / hemiparesis  typically affects the arm, hand, and leg on one side of the body.
• Spastic diplegia / diparesis involves muscle stiffness that is predominantly in the legs. The arms may be affected to a lesser extent
• Spastic quadriplegia / quadriparesis is the most severe form of CP. It is caused by widespread damage to the brain or significant brain malformations.

Dyskinetic: These motor patterns are characterized by slow and uncontrollable writhing or jerky movements of the hands, feet, arms, or legs.

Ataxic: Ataxia affects both balance and depth perception. Children with this type of CP will often have poor coordination and walk unsteadily with a wide-based gait.

Mixed Types: Mixed types of CP are symptoms that don’t correspond to any single type of the condition but are a mix of types.

Taking care of a child with cerebral palsy can be expensive, and depending on the level of the disorder, the cost can climb to $1 million for a lifetime of medical care, therapy, home care, rehabilitation, and more.

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#2 Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) 

Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a dangerous gastrointestinal problem that affects premature babies. The condition inflames intestinal tissue, which causes the tissue to die. It’s estimated that nearly all babies (9 out of 10) with NEC are born early.  Some babies with NEC may face long-term health problems.

Necrotizing enterocolitis is diagnosed by your doctor by checking your baby for a swollen belly and other NEC symptoms such as diarrhea, bloody stool, green or yellowish vomit, or the baby not wanting to eat or lack of weight gain. Blood tests and fecal tests may also be preformed.

What are the problems with cow-milk based formulas?

The simplest reason is that cow-milk based formula may lack some of the probiotics (live microorganisms found in the gut flora) needed for proper growth of the preemies. Human breast-milk based products offers a greater level of total nutrition.  

Cow’s milk or a cow-milk protein is altered to resemble breast mild. Some of the known brands are:

• Best Organic Baby Formula
• Similac Pro-Advance Baby Formula
• Enfamil
• Up&Up Infant Formula
• HappyBaby Organic

In 2012 the American Academy of Pediatrics clearly stated that all premature babies should be fed human breast mild exclusively.

Doctor Alan Lucas, a professor at University College in London offers this bit of advice.

“The most current evidence suggests that a diet with entirely human milk and enriched feeds manufactured from donated human milk will meet the nutritional needs of the baby without the potential negative health effects that can come with a cow milk fortifier.”  

Parents shouldn’t have to worry about what formula to feed their premature babies, and if your baby has been diagnosed with NEC we’re here to help in this difficult time.  We feel strongly that these toxic cow-milk based products have failed to warn all parents of the link to developing necrotizing enterocolitis, and we will hold the manufacturers accountable.

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#3 Cronobacter Contaminated Powdered Infant Formula

This is a very recent problem, news from both the Centers for Disease Control and the FDA has alerted parents to a recall of a popular baby food brand due to cronobacter bacteria infections. Sadly there have been 2 deaths reported and 4 cases of babies having severe illness from this cronobacter bacterial infection.

WHAT: Abbott Nutrition has recalled all lots of Similac, Alimentum, or EleCare powdered infant formulas. These recalled powdered infant formulas were produced at its manufacturing facility in Sturgis, Michigan.

WHEN: Abbott Nutrition states it started the recall on February 17, and February 28, 2022.

WHY: The FDA investigators at the Abbott Nutrition facility in Sturgis, MI, collected numerous product and environmental samples:

• Five environmental subsamples collected from the Sturgis, MI, facility were positive for Cronobacter sakazakii; four were detected by the FDA and one was detected through firm-initiated testing.
• The positive Cronobacter sakazakii environmental samples at the Sturgis, MI, facility have been analyzed using Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS), revealing five different strains of Cronobacter sakazakii.

Parents are now being warned to STOP feeding your baby any recalled powdered formula.

If you feed your baby with other types of Similac, Alimentum, or EleCare powdered formula:

•  Check to see if your powdered formula is recalled using one of these three ways:

Compare the lot code and use-by date on the bottom of the package to the recall information.

• If you can’t find the code on the powdered formula package, do not use it.

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Our team of defective product attorneys and medical device lawyers take every case of child injury and birth injury seriously and with compassion, parents need an injury advocate to help them cope with the financial burdens that happens due to medical malpractice and defective recalled products. 

If your child was injured we offer a 100% Free Case Review, start by contacting us at 1-800-631-5656 today, or use the secure contact form on this page.    

Page: Facts on the Common Types of Birth Injuries updated on 6/17/2022