Birth Fracture Attorney in Rhode Island

When a Broken Bone During Delivery Raises Questions About Medical Care

Birth fractures are broken bones sustained during labor or delivery. The clavicle, or collarbone, is the most common bone fractured during birth, while fractures of the humerus and other bones occur less often.

A fracture does not automatically mean that medical negligence occurred. Some newborn fractures happen even during appropriately managed deliveries and heal without lasting complications. Others warrant closer review because of the circumstances surrounding the delivery, the use of instruments, the management of an obstetric emergency, or a delay in diagnosing an associated injury.

At Decof, Mega & Quinn, P.C., we have represented injured people and families across Rhode Island since 1975. Our Rhode Island birth injury practice includes cases involving serious labor and delivery injuries and questions about whether medical care contributed to preventable harm.

If your newborn sustained a fracture during delivery and you have questions about whether negligence played a role, contact us at (401) 200-4059 for a free consultation.

Medical Malpractice Experience for Complex Birth Injury Cases

Birth fracture claims require more than showing that a baby had a broken bone after delivery. The medical record must be reviewed to determine what happened, what risks were present, how the delivery team responded, and whether the care met the applicable medical standard.

Our attorneys have recovered more than $1 billion for clients across the firm's practice. That record includes Rhode Island's largest medical malpractice verdict and the state's second-largest personal injury judgment.

The firm also has nine attorneys with substantial medical-malpractice experience and access to a network of medical consultants who help analyze clinical records and complex medical issues.

Those resources matter in a birth injury case because determining whether a fracture was unavoidable or connected to negligent care often requires detailed review of prenatal records, labor and delivery documentation, imaging, newborn examinations, and follow-up treatment.

Common Types of Birth Fractures

Clavicle Fractures

The clavicle is the most frequently fractured bone during birth.

A newborn with a clavicle fracture may show decreased movement of one arm, irritability with movement, swelling, or an asymmetric reflex. Some fractures are not obvious immediately after delivery and may be diagnosed later when symptoms or healing changes become noticeable.

Clavicle fractures often heal well with conservative treatment. Their presence alone does not establish that anyone acted negligently.

Humerus Fractures

The humerus is the upper-arm bone. Humeral fractures are less common than clavicle fractures and may occur during complicated deliveries, including some breech deliveries or deliveries requiring difficult maneuvers.

Signs can include pain with arm movement, swelling, abnormal mobility, or apparent weakness of the affected arm.

Because limited arm movement can also be associated with a nerve injury, a clinician may need to distinguish a humerus fracture from conditions involving the brachial plexus.

Skull Fractures

Skull fractures related to birth are substantially less common than clavicle and humerus fractures.

When one is suspected, the medical team may need to evaluate whether there is associated intracranial injury or another form of head trauma. The circumstances of the delivery, imaging findings, and newborn's clinical condition all matter when determining what occurred.

Delivery Circumstances Associated With Birth Fractures

Several obstetric circumstances may be relevant when a newborn sustains a fracture. Their presence does not prove malpractice, but they can help determine what parts of the delivery record deserve closer examination.

Shoulder dystocia: During shoulder dystocia, the baby's shoulder becomes impacted after delivery of the head. Clavicle fractures and brachial plexus injuries can occur in connection with this obstetric emergency. Shoulder dystocia can be unpredictable, however, and a fracture does not by itself establish that the delivery team managed the emergency improperly.

Suspected macrosomia: Higher birth weight is associated with increased risk of shoulder dystocia and birth trauma. At the same time, estimating fetal weight before delivery is imperfect. A malpractice review therefore looks at the information actually available to the providers and whether their decisions were reasonable under the circumstances.

Breech presentation: Breech deliveries involve different mechanics and obstetric maneuvers than head-first deliveries and have been associated with some long-bone fractures, including humerus fractures.

Instrument-assisted delivery: Forceps and vacuum extraction can be appropriate tools in selected deliveries. When a fracture occurs after an assisted delivery, the investigation may examine why the device was used, whether the clinical conditions supported its use, how it was applied, and whether its use contributed to the injury. Our page on vacuum and forceps injuries explains this form of delivery-related trauma in greater detail.

When a Birth Fracture May Involve Medical Negligence

The legal question is not simply whether a newborn had a fracture. It is whether a healthcare provider departed from the applicable standard of care and whether that departure caused additional harm.

Depending on the circumstances, a birth fracture investigation may examine:

• How the baby's presentation, estimated size, and labor progress were evaluated
• Whether a shoulder dystocia or other complication developed
• What maneuvers were used during delivery
• Whether forceps or vacuum extraction was clinically appropriate
• How instruments or traction were applied
• Whether the fracture or an associated injury was recognized promptly
• What treatment and follow-up were provided after delivery

Our medical malpractice attorneys work with medical consultants when appropriate to review those issues against the clinical record.

A separate question can arise when a fracture is accompanied by nerve damage. For example, reduced arm movement after delivery may involve both a fracture and a brachial plexus injury. Identifying each injury matters because the causes, treatment needs, and long-term effects may differ.

What Evidence Can Help Explain What Happened?

Birth injury cases are often reconstructed from records created before, during, and after delivery.

Depending on the case, relevant evidence may include prenatal records, ultrasound findings, labor and delivery notes, fetal monitoring records, documentation of shoulder dystocia maneuvers, operative or instrument-delivery notes, newborn examinations, imaging studies, orthopedic evaluations, and follow-up treatment.

The timing of the diagnosis may also matter. Some neonatal fractures are missed during the initial hospital examination and identified only after parents or clinicians notice reduced movement, swelling, pain with movement, or another abnormal finding.

Medical review can help distinguish an injury that occurred despite reasonable care from one in which a preventable medical error may have contributed.

Compensation in a Rhode Island Birth Fracture Case

When medical negligence causes a compensable birth injury, the available damages depend on the child's actual injuries and losses.

A claim may include legally recoverable losses associated with:

• Medical treatment and diagnostic imaging
• Orthopedic care
• Physical or occupational therapy
• Future medical care when lasting complications exist
• Pain and suffering
• Other consequences supported by the evidence and Rhode Island law

Many isolated neonatal fractures heal well. Others may occur alongside nerve damage or additional injuries that require more extensive treatment.

For that reason, the value of a birth fracture claim cannot be determined simply from the name of the fracture. Medical prognosis, associated injuries, future care needs, causation, and the strength of the negligence evidence all matter.

Rhode Island Deadlines for Medical Malpractice Claims Involving Children

Rhode Island generally requires a medical malpractice action to be filed within three years of the incident that gave rise to the claim.

The statute contains important provisions that can matter in a birth injury case.

When malpractice-related harm could not have been discovered through reasonable diligence at the time it occurred, Rhode Island law generally allows suit within three years of when the malpractice should reasonably have been discovered.

The statute also contains a specific provision for minors. When the injured person is under a disability because of age and no action is brought within the initial three-year period, Rhode Island law generally permits the action to be brought at any time up to age 21.

Those rules should not be used as a reason to delay reviewing a possible claim. Evidence, medical records, and witness recollections can become harder to develop over time, and the exact deadline depends on the facts and the claims involved.

To speak with a Rhode Island birth fracture attorney about what happened during your child’s delivery, call Decof, Mega & Quinn, P.C. at (401) 200-4059.