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The use of forceps to assist in the delivery of a baby occasionally results in parents making a medical negligence compensation claim through a birth injury lawyer.
About one in eight births in the UK need assistance, which may be with forceps or ventouse (vacuum extractor), so that the baby can be helped from the womb as quickly and efficiently as possible to reduce the chance of it being deprived of oxygen which can lead to disability.
An assisted birth is likely to be recommended by a doctor or midwife if the baby has become distressed during the pushing stage of labour and is not making sufficient movement through the mother's pelvis.
A mother who has become too tired to continue to push naturally or who has a medical condition which means her health is at risk if she pushes for too long, such as a heart complaint, may also need intervention to ensure a safe delivery.
When a baby is lying sideways in a breech position, this is often a reason for medical professionals to try to manipulate the foetus in the womb either manually or with forceps and an experienced obstetrician is usually successful in delivering the child safely.
In order to use forceps, a doctor has to make a cut known as an episiotomy to enlarge the opening of the womb to insert the forceps and this is one of the reasons this type of delivery can be painful for the mother, although analgesia will be given.
If the baby is not born after three attempts to use forceps combined with the mother pushing, then an urgent caesarean section should be carried out.
Although a forceps birth is likely to be more painful than a ventouse intervention, this technique has a higher success rate. However, it has the disadvantage of presenting a greater risk of the mother suffering from damage to her pelvic floor or perineum during the procedure.
In most cases of a forceps-assisted birth, a woman is able to have a subsequent normal delivery.
Although there are rare instances of the baby suffering brain damage as a result of the use of forceps, most birth injuries resulting from this form of assistance are relatively minor and heal within a few months. These include bruising, swelling, scars, skull fractures and temporary loss of nerve or muscular functions.
Expert birth injury lawyer at YouClaim
The field of clinical negligence as it relates to birth accidents is quite a specialist field of law but here at YouClaim we can offer the services of an expert birth injury lawyer who has helped other families in similar circumstances.
From the first steps in taking legal advice about the possibility of making a damages claim through to representation and possible court hearing, you can be assured of the highest standards of professional work, as monitored by the Solicitors Regulation Authority of the Law Society.
If you or a close relative has been affected by birth injury, you can find out how we can help you by completing the claim form on this page, use echat to communicate with one of our sympathetic staff or speak to a member of the team by calling 0800 10 757 95.
