Illinois Erb's Palsy Medical Malpractice Case Turns on Engineering Expert's Testimony
Erb’s palsy is a injury to a child's brachial plexus nerves caused by an abnormal or difficult child birth. The brachial plexus is a cluster of nerves in your neck that control all arm movements. Erb’s palsy can be caused by excessive pulling on the shoulders of the infant by the medical staff during delivery. The resulting paralysis affecting the movement of the child's shoulders, arms or hands can be partial or complete. And while sometimes the paralysis can resolve on its own, it could also necessitate physical therapy or surgery.
In a recent Illinois case, baby Tanisha Ruffin’s shoulder became impacted on her mother’s pelvic bone during delivery, which put stress on Tanisha's shoulders. In order to free up her shoulders from her mother’s pelvic bone, the defendant obstetrician testified that he used a vacuum extractor cup and a gentle traction on the baby’s head to manipulate her out. Nonetheless, Tanisha was born with Erb’s palsy because of the damage to the brachial plexus nerve network in her shoulder area.
The big issue at trial was whether the Illinois birth injury was caused by excessive traction with the extractor cup, or by the natural propulsive forces of labor.
