Report: Understanding Racial & Ethnic Disparities in Birth Injuries
The hope of every pregnant mother is to deliver a healthy baby, but sometimes complications can arise. One such complication is brachial plexus birth injury, also known as Erb's palsy. This injury happens when the nerves in the shoulder area are stretched, pinched, or torn during birth, which can cause weakness or paralysis in the baby's arm. Contemporary OB/GYN recently shared that studies have shown that Black and Hispanic mothers are more likely to have a baby with Erb’s Palsy, but the reasons remained unclear, until one doctor set out to find out why.
Dr. Mary Claire B. Manske of Shriners Hospital for Children sought to determine whether Hispanic and Black mothers had a greater number of known risk factors for this birth injury, which then increased the chances of it occurring. As it turns out, they did not.
From the mother’s side, risk factors for Erb’s Palsy include obesity, diabetes, a previous pregnancy with shoulder dystocia, and being pregnant with more than one baby. Infants with a higher birth weight also are susceptible. Additional risk factors include breech births and medications like oxytocin or an epidural during labor.
Dr. Manske presented her findings at the 2024 ACOG Annual Clinical & Scientific Meeting, identifying inadequate prenatal care as a possible reason. She advocated for clinicians to focus on this potentially modifiable risk factor to help prevent future injuries.
Sometimes birth injury is caused by risk factors beyond our control. Sometimes they are caused by a lack of proper care. If you or your child suffered an injury during delivery and would like to speak with a top Philadelphia birth injury attorney in Philadelphia, please contact us. Tom Duffy has recovered birth injury settlements in excess of $20,000,000.