Shoulder Dystocia & Erb's Palsy

During the course of labor and delivery an obstetric emergency can arise called Shoulder Dystocia. This condition results in the failure of an infants shoulders to deliver spontaneously. This often happens when a large baby's shoulder literally impacts upon the mother's pubic bone preventing the child from delivering unassisted. This condition places both the pregnant woman and fetus at risk for injury. Reported incidence of shoulder dystocia ranges from approximately 1% to slightly more than 4% among vaginal cephalic deliveries.

The physician's timely recognition and management of this condition is essential in avoiding serious neurological injury to the fetus. Often a physician will exert force in attempting to free the fetus and in doing so may cause a stretch injury to the Brachial Plexus nerve, affecting the infants extremities, the child's clavicle or humerus. The most potentially serious Brachial Plexus injury is caused by extreme amounts of traction and pressure exerted by the physician on the infant's head and neck. This stretch injury often results in a permanent disability referred to as Erb's Palsy.

If a stretch injury occurs during delivery causing Erb's Palsy the infant may suffer permanent weakness of an upper extremity, restriction of movement of the fingers, hand, wrist or arm resulting in physical deformity. This type of injury can affect a child's life and vocation.

If your child suffered a similar type of injury, he or she may have a claim for monetary damages against the physician who performed the delivery. To schedule a consultation, call the Ginsberg & O'Connor, P.C. at (609) 727-1991. We're located at The Atrium II, 3000 Atrium Way, Suite 101, in Mt. Laurel.