What Are the Five Most Common Birth Injuries Caused by Medical Malpractice Today?

Posted on behalf of Peter T. Nicholl in Medical Malpractice Published on December 16, 2025 and updated on January 16, 2026.

Bringing a child into the world should be one of life’s most hopeful moments. But when something goes wrong during labor or delivery and your baby is left with serious injuries, it triggers overwhelming emotions followed by a lot of unanswered questions.

• Was this an unavoidable complication?
• Did a doctor, nurse, or hospital staff member miss something important?
• Could this have been prevented?

The truth is: many birth injuries are the result of preventable medical errors, but some birth injuries can happen even when doctors do everything right.

When providers miss clear warning signs, delay intervention, or deviate from accepted standards of care, families may have grounds for a claim. Below, we explain how these injuries happen, how malpractice is proven, and what families in Baltimore, MD can do next if they suspect a preventable birth injury.

Five Common Birth Injuries Caused by Medical Malpractice

Not every birth injury means a doctor made a mistake, but certain injuries happen almost exclusively when medical providers ignore warning signs or use dangerous techniques. Maryland families deserve to know which injuries rarely occur without negligence so they can ask the right questions about what happened during their baby’s delivery.

Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy affects how your child moves, maintains balance, and controls their muscles. The severity varies—some children need minimal support while others require lifelong assistance. This permanent condition develops when a baby’s brain is damaged before, during, or shortly after birth.

Malpractice occurs when doctors and medical staff ignore fetal heart rate problems showing oxygen deprivation, fail to perform emergency C-sections despite clear distress signals, or don’t treat maternal infections during pregnancy. Delayed response to umbilical cord complications or failure to address dangerously high bilirubin levels after birth also causes preventable brain damage.

Your child may have cerebral palsy if you notice:

• Stiff or floppy muscles that feel unusually tight or loose
• Delayed milestones like rolling over, sitting, crawling, or walking
• Feeding difficulties with swallowing, sucking, or breathing while eating
• Poor coordination grasping objects or controlling movements

Erb’s Palsy (Brachial Plexus Injuries)

Erb’s palsy damages nerves controlling your baby’s arm and hand, causing weakness or paralysis on one side. Some children recover with therapy, but others face permanent limitations affecting sports, writing, and daily tasks. This injury happens when nerve bundles near the neck and shoulder get stretched or torn during delivery.

Medical malpractice may result if doctors pull too hard on the baby’s head or neck during shoulder dystocia instead of using proper maneuvers, fail to recognize the baby is too large for safe vaginal delivery, or misuse forceps and vacuum extractors. Not discussing risk factors like gestational diabetes that make shoulder dystocia likely also constitutes a breach of duty.

Your baby may have Erb’s palsy if you notice:

• Limp arm held motionless while the other moves normally
• No grip strength in the affected hand
• Limited shoulder movement compared to the unaffected side
• Abnormal wrist position turned inward and flexed

Bone Fractures

Newborn fractures most commonly affect the collarbone but can also include broken arms, legs, or skulls. Some fractures are obvious immediately while others appear days later through unusual movements or swelling. These injuries happen when providers use excessive force or improper techniques during delivery.

Providers breach standards of care when they continue pulling forcefully despite clear resistance, use delivery instruments when the baby’s size or position makes them inappropriate, or fail to recommend C-sections when vaginal delivery poses clear fracture risks. Fractures during routine, uncomplicated deliveries almost always indicate excessive force was used.

Your baby may have a fracture if you notice:

• Crying when touched or moved in specific areas
• Visible swelling or bruising over bones
• Reluctance to move an arm or leg
• Unusual positioning of a limb at odd angles

Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)

HIE is brain damage from oxygen deprivation during labor and delivery. The injury ranges from mild to severe — some children recover fully while others face lifelong disabilities, including developmental delays and cerebral palsy. This happens when something cuts off or reduces oxygen flow to the baby’s brain during birth.

Negligent care includes ignoring concerning fetal heart monitor patterns, delaying emergency C-sections despite signs of distress, or failing to recognize umbilical cord compression. Mismanaging labor with excessive Pitocin, not responding to dropping oxygen levels, or allowing labor to continue too long when intervention is needed creates preventable brain damage.

Your baby may have HIE if you notice:

• Seizures within hours of birth with convulsions or jerking
• Breathing difficulties requiring oxygen or ventilator support
• Weak muscle tone feeling limp or floppy when held
• Feeding problems unable to coordinate sucking and swallowing

Intracranial Hemorrhages (Brain Bleeding)

Brain bleeding means blood vessels inside or around the brain have ruptured, causing dangerous pressure and potential permanent damage. Some babies show no immediate symptoms, but bleeding causes developmental problems that appear as your child grows. This results from head trauma during delivery, most often when doctors misuse forceps or vacuum extractors.

Medical errors include using forceps or vacuum devices unnecessarily or improperly, making multiple failed attempts at assisted delivery instead of switching to C-section, or failing to monitor for bleeding after traumatic deliveries. Using instruments when the baby’s position makes them dangerous or continuing when devices aren’t working properly causes preventable hemorrhages.

Your baby may have brain bleeding if you notice:

• Seizures shortly after birth with shaking or staring episodes
• Bulging soft spots on the head appearing swollen or raised
• Extreme irritability with inconsolable crying
• Unusual lethargy with no interest in feeding or rarely waking

Do These Injuries Always Mean Malpractice Occurred?

No. Some birth injuries happen even when doctors and nurses do everything right. Complications during delivery can be unpredictable, and not every bad outcome means someone made a mistake.

However, certain injuries rarely occur without negligence. Erb’s palsy from excessive pulling, brain damage from ignored fetal distress, and fractures during routine deliveries often indicate medical errors. The key question is whether your medical team followed proper standards of care or made preventable mistakes.

Maryland law requires proof that your doctor’s actions fell below acceptable medical standards and directly caused your baby’s injury. This is why birth injury cases need a thorough investigation by legal and medical professionals who can determine whether negligence occurred. We examine your medical records, consult with specialists, and identify where providers may have failed to protect your child.

How Medical Malpractice Is Proven in Birth Injury Cases

Birth injury malpractice claims in Maryland require proving four specific legal elements that connect your doctor’s actions to your child’s harm.

Duty of Care

Your doctor or hospital owed your baby a duty of care the moment they accepted responsibility for your pregnancy and delivery. This legal duty obligates them to provide competent medical treatment that meets professional standards. Every obstetrician, nurse, and hospital staff member involved in your baby’s birth had this duty.

Breach of Duty

We prove they breached that duty by failing to meet accepted medical standards during labor or delivery. This includes delayed emergency C-sections, ignored fetal monitoring warnings, improper use of delivery instruments, or failure to recognize complications. Medical experts compare what your providers did against what competent doctors should have done in the same situation.

Causation

We demonstrate the breach directly caused your child’s injury by showing your baby would not have suffered harm if providers had acted properly. Medical experts review fetal monitoring strips, labor progression notes, and delivery records to pinpoint exactly when and how negligence occurred. This element connects the medical error to the specific injury your child sustained.

Damages

We document the actual harm your family suffered because of the injury. This includes your child’s medical expenses, future care needs, therapy costs, specialized equipment, pain and suffering, and lost quality of life. We calculate both current costs and lifetime care requirements because birth injuries often create financial burdens that last decades.

Evidence Needed to Show a Birth Injury Was Due to Medical Malpractice

Proving medical negligence caused your baby’s birth injury requires specific documentation that shows what happened during labor and delivery. We gather evidence that reveals where your medical team’s decisions and actions deviated from proper care standards. Compelling evidence makes the difference between winning compensation and having your claim denied.

• Fetal Monitoring Strips: These continuous recordings show your baby’s heart rate throughout labor and reveal whether medical staff recognized and responded to signs of fetal distress appropriately.
• Labor and Delivery Records: Nurses’ notes, physician orders, and timing documentation establish what interventions were performed, when decisions were made, and how long providers waited before taking action.
• Maternal Medical Records: Your prenatal care documentation shows whether doctors identified risk factors like gestational diabetes, high blood pressure, or the baby’s size that should have influenced delivery decisions.
• Delivery Room Staff Communications: Notes about discussions between nurses and doctors reveal whether concerns were raised and ignored, or if warning signs were never communicated to decision-makers.
• Hospital Policies and Protocols: Written standards for managing complications show what your medical team should have done and prove they didn’t follow their own safety requirements.
• Newborn Medical Records: Your baby’s APGAR scores, resuscitation needs, and immediate post-birth treatment document the severity of distress and injury at delivery.
• Expert Medical Opinions: Specialists in obstetrics and neonatology review all evidence and provide professional assessments on whether your providers’ actions fell below acceptable standards and directly caused your child’s injury.

Was My Baby’s Injury Preventable — or Just a Complication?

This is the hardest question Maryland families face after a birth injury. Doctors often claim complications were unavoidable, but many injuries result from ignored warning signs, delayed decisions, or improper techniques that violated medical standards.

If your medical team didn’t follow protocols, failed to respond to clear distress signals, or used dangerous delivery methods when safer options existed, your baby’s injury was likely preventable. We investigate exactly what happened during your delivery to determine whether negligence — not some random complication — caused your child’s harm.

What Baltimore Families Can Do Next

If you suspect medical negligence caused your baby’s birth injury, take these steps to protect your child’s future and your legal rights:

• Request Complete Medical Records: Obtain all prenatal care, labor and delivery, and newborn records from every hospital and provider involved in your baby’s birth.
• Document Your Baby’s Condition: Keep detailed notes about symptoms, medical appointments, treatments, and how the injury affects your child’s daily life and development.
• Consult Medical Specialists: Get evaluations from pediatric neurologists, orthopedic specialists, or other experts who can diagnose the full extent of your baby’s injury.
• Preserve Evidence: Save hospital bills, correspondence with medical providers, and any communications about your baby’s care and complications during delivery.
• Avoid Signing Releases: Do not sign documents from the hospital or insurance companies without legal review, as these may waive your right to pursue compensation.
• Contact The Law Offices of Peter T. Nicholl: We offer free case reviews to determine if malpractice occurred and connect you with medical experts who can strengthen your claim.

Frequently Asked Questions About Birth Injuries in Maryland

Are birth injuries common?

Birth injuries occur in a small percentage of deliveries, but when they happen, the consequences can be devastating. Not all birth injuries result from negligence — some happen despite proper care. However, Erb’s palsy, severe brain damage from oxygen deprivation, and fractures during routine deliveries are often due to medical errors.

How do I know if the hospital is hiding something?

Hospitals may delay releasing records, provide incomplete documentation, or give vague explanations about what happened during delivery. If medical staff avoid your questions, claim records are unavailable, or their explanations don’t match what you witnessed; these are red flags. We know how to obtain complete medical records and identify missing documentation that hospitals hope you won’t notice.

How long do I have to file a birth injury lawsuit?

Maryland gives families three years from the injury date to file medical malpractice lawsuits, but circumstances may impact that deadline so consult with an attorney to determine what deadline applies to your situation. Waiting to file weakens your case because evidence disappears and witnesses’ memories fade. We recommend consulting a lawyer within months of the injury, not years later when critical proof may be gone.

What compensation can families recover?

Families can recover medical expenses, future care costs, therapy and rehabilitation, specialized equipment, pain and suffering, and lost quality of life. Birth injury cases involving permanent disabilities often result in substantial settlements or verdicts because they account for decades of ongoing care needs. We calculate your child’s lifetime costs to ensure compensation covers their actual needs.

Will suing affect my child’s future care?

No. Hospitals and doctors must continue providing appropriate medical care regardless of lawsuits. Your child’s treating physicians are typically not the ones who made mistakes during delivery. Legal action protects your child’s future by securing funds for specialized care, equipment, and therapies insurance won’t cover. Compensation ensures your child gets the best possible treatment for their condition.

Do You Need Legal Help for a Suspected Birth Injury? Call Our Trusted Baltimore Law Firm Today

If your child suffered a preventable birth injury, the negligent parties should be held liable for the medical costs and other damages you incur as a result.

Our experienced Baltimore birth injury lawyers at [firm-name] are prepared to help you throughout the legal process. Contact our law offices to speak with a compassionate and qualified attorney today. We would be honored to help you.

Call [firm-name] today to discuss your situation in a FREE, no-risk case review. 410-244-7005