Childbirth is supposed to be a joyous occasion, but parents and their children are commonly affected by serious birth injuries that could severely impact the child for the rest of their lives.

One such birth injury is brachial plexus palsy, which can be caused by various physical traumas as can happen during a difficult childbirth. According to statistics, there are approximately seven birth injuries for every 1,000 children birth in the United States.

Here are answers to some common questions about brachial plexus palsy.

What is Brachial Plexus Palsy?

Brachial plexus palsy results from damage to the nerves between the neck and shoulders. It is one of the most commonly reported birth injuries.

While the severity of this birth injury varies between cases, it could cause a loss of muscle function or even complete paralysis in the upper arm.

The brachial plexus is a complex nerve network operating the movements between the neck and shoulder, which control muscle function in the chest, shoulder, arms and hands. This nerve network is also responsible for feeling sensations in the upper arms.

This means that injury to the brachial plexus can affect either the muscles of the shoulder and elbow or muscles in the forearm and hand, depending on where the injury occurs.

The most serious of these injuries occur when the nerves are ripped or torn from the spinal cord which causes paralysis in the upper arm.

What Causes Brachial Plexus Palsy?

The injury that leads to brachial plexus palsy is typically caused by the tension the nerve network feels when the shoulder is forced down, while the neck is stretched up and away from the injured shoulder. While this condition can happen to adults who suffered traumatic physical injuries, it can also happen during childbirth.

During difficult deliveries, a medical professional may be forced to pull the infant a certain way that may damage the infant’s upper arms. This typically happens if the birth weight is high or if the baby is in a breach position. In this type of birth, the shoulders may become wedged in the birth canal.

Under these circumstances, the baby may have to be forcefully pulled out or forced into a different position in which the shoulder becomes stuck behind the pelvic bone. The damage from this situation could develop into Erb’s palsy.

Notable symptoms of Erb’s palsy include:

• Weakness in one arm
• Loss of feeling in one arm
• Partial or complete paralysis of one arm

Can Brachial Plexus Palsy be Prevented?

While not all cases of brachial plexus palsy can be prevented, depending on the difficulty of the birth, all cases could be prevented if it were caused by medical malpractice.

This means that if the mother and her labor progression were not properly monitored and if the medical staff failed to take any action to prevent potential birth injuries, then brachial plexus palsy most likely could have been prevented.

Medical malpractice can take many forms, but brachial plexus palsy and other birth injuries are typically caused by:

• Improperly pulling or twisting the infant during delivery
• Improperly handling medical devices like a vacuum extraction tool or forceps
• Giving the incorrect medication doses to the mother during labor
• Failing to monitor the infant’s heartbeat for possible distress
• Not performing an emergency c-section once it is determined the baby cannot be delivered vaginally