A later-term miscarriage or stillbirth are two of the hardest scenarios for parents to cope with as outcomes of pregnancy. Sometimes, there is no single identifiable cause of the nonviable pregnancies and parents must simply learn how to manage their grief and anger at the way things turned out.
But that is not always the case with miscarriages and stillbirths. There often were clear but ignored signs that the pregnancy was not progressing normally. Midwives and obstetricians are trained to quickly identify and treat these conditions to increase the chances of healthy babies being born to healthy mothers. When they drop the diagnostic ball, it’s heartbreaking for the parents and can be a death sentence for the babies in utero.
Common pregnancy and labor complications
A common complication of pregnancy is often elevated maternal blood pressure. While untreated hypertension carries its own health risks, the greater risk to pregnant women is preeclampsia. That condition can result in premature deliveries of low birth weight babies.
Untreated, it also can kill both the mother and baby. The mother may develop kidney failure and have to receive dialysis for the rest of her life. If the pregnancy is far enough along, the obstetrician may recommend an immediate C-section to end the risk to both mother and baby.
Gestational diabetes may develop during a pregnancy, requiring dietary changes and/or insulin injections to keep the mother and baby from suffering harm.
Some parasitic, bacterial and viral infections in the mother can create havoc with an otherwise healthy pregnancy. Even somethinga seemingly mild as a urinary tract infection can create dangerous complications for a developing fetus.
Whose fault was your miscarriage or stillbirth?
Not every instance of prenatal demise can be linked to actionable malpractice or negligence on the part of a health care provider. But some baby deaths definitely result from health care professionals ignoring or failing to recognize clear signs of impending doom for a mother and her developing fetus.
If you know or suspect that your obstetrician or midwife caused or contributed to your miscarriage or stillbirth, you have the right to seek some answers — and potentially a monetary settlement. A Peachtree City medical malpractice attorney can review your case and provide advice.
