New York Klumpke’s Palsy Lawyers

Advocating for Newborns With Klumpke’s Palsy in New York

Your child’s birth should be a joyous experience, but that depends largely on the skill, experience, and competence of your healthcare providers. Doctors who apply too much pressure on a child’s body or mishandle medical devices like forceps can cause severe trauma and lifelong disabilities, including Klumpke’s palsy. Klumpke’s palsy comes with a massive price tag, and parents should not have to shoulder these costs alone if a negligent doctor caused their child’s injuries.

If your child developed Klumpke’s palsy as a result of medical negligence, you deserve full compensation for your child’s injuries. Out team at Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro & Halperin, LLP has recovered millions of dollars for injured infants and can provide the strong legal representation your family needs right now. Our New York Klumpke’s palsy attorneys can sit down with your family in a free consultation, explain your rights to compensation, and create a plan to hold the person who injured your child accountable for his or her negligence. Call us today at (212) 986-7353 to get a free case evaluation.

Back to Top

What Is Klumpke’s Palsy?

Klumpke’s palsy is a type of nerve damage and paralysis that occurs when a newborn’s lower brachial plexus nerve is damaged. The brachial plexus nerve is located in the shoulders and branches out into the neck and upper back. When damaged, a newborn can suffer from complete or incomplete paralysis, chronic pain, and developmental issues.

Klumpke’s palsy is similar to another brachial plexus injury called Erb’s palsy, but the key difference is where a child will experience paralysis. Erb’s palsy typically affects the upper parts of the arm and shoulder, while Klumpke’s palsy affects the hands, wrists, and fingers. This injury can range from muscle weakness to nerve pain to difficulties with fine motor movements, such as holding a pencil or lifting heavy objects.

Back to Top

How Negligence Causes Klumpke’s Palsy

Klumpke’s palsy often occurs during birth when doctors use too much pressure to deliver a newborn. Doctors need to carefully remove a child from a mother without causing unnecessary injuries. Rushing, disobeying medical procedures, and misusing medical equipment can all damage a newborn’s brachial plexus nerve and lead to Klumpke’s palsy.

Common forms of birth injuries that contribute to Klumpke’s palsy include:

• Not preparing a birth plan for high risk pregnancy such as with high weight infants or pregnancies over 40 weeks
• Shoulder dystocia, which occurs when an infant’s shoulder is trapped against a mother’s pelvic bone
• Recklessly using forceps to deliver an infant
• Fractures along the clavicle or shoulders
• Breech delivery where an infant is delivered feet first

Back to Top

Impact of Klumpke’s Palsy

Klumpke’s palsy is a lifelong disability that brings many hardships on a child and his or her family. At first, a newborn may experience numbness, muscle weakness, or paralysis of the hands and fingers on one side of the body. If a newborn is not moving his or her lower arm or hand, does not display reflexes in the lower arm, or is unable to grip objects, then it could be a sign of Klumpke’s palsy.

As they grow up, the child will have difficulties using the affected arm and may need assistance with basic tasks. Klumpke’s palsy can also lead to another condition called Horner’s syndrome. Horner’s syndrome affects the opposite side of the face and presents itself as a drooping eyelid, lack of sweating on the face, and constriction of the pupil.

Proper treatment can help the nerve heal and give them a great range of motion, but it must be provided early on. Surgeries, physical therapy, and other treatment should all be provided when the child is young to maximize the healing process.

However, the costs of this treatment and any long-term care your child needs should not be yours to bear alone if your child was a victim of medical malpractice. Doctors and medical staff should follow proper procedures during difficult births to avoid causing serious disabilities like Klumpke’s palsy. If a medical error caused your child’s trauma, then you should immediately speak to a New York Klumpke’s palsy lawyer about filing a malpractice claim.

Back to Top

Recovering Compensation for Medical Malpractice

Our New York medical malpractice lawyers at Wingate, Russotti, Shapiro & Halperin, LLP have spent decades fighting for children who were injured by birth injuries. We know how distressing these events can be for parents and believe in treating all of our clients with compassion and sympathy. We always look to protect your future and your child’s future and will advocate for the highest possible award to give your child the chance for a healthy life.

If your child developed Klumpke’s palsy due to medical negligence, reach out to us at (212) 986-7353. We can explain your rights in a free consultation.

Back to Top