Obstetricians in Texas must be prepared to manage any problems or complications that may arise when their patients go into labor. Not only are they responsible for the lives of the women under their care, but they are also responsible for the health and safety of the babies that they deliver into the world. While some mothers may have smooth labors and deliveries that do not require any intervention, others may need support and intervention from their doctors to birth their babies.
Forceps are a common tool that can be used when labor and delivery stalls. Forceps are a tool that resembles a pair of spoons held together and that are placed around a baby’s head to guide it out of the birth canal. Although the proper use of forceps should result in a healthy and safe birth, serious and deadly consequences can occur when they are used unnecessarily or improperly.
Babies whose births is facilitated by forceps may suffer trauma to their face, eyes or skull. They may endure bleeding in their brain or facial paralysis. Forceps use may cause seizures in babies, and mothers who have forceps used during their deliveries may suffer internal trauma to their bodies as well.
In emergency situations, forceps can be an effective tool for extracting a baby who is suffering life-threatening complications. However, their use is not without risk to both mother or child. When a child suffers an injury due to the use of forceps during their birth, their parents may want to investigate if their child has rights to compensation. Birth injury lawsuits may be able to address these difficult medical issues.