When your baby is born prematurely, as new parents, you look at them with love and disbelief. As you breathe hopeful sighs of gratitude that your baby is strong, you are also counting arms and legs, fingers and toes. While a missing limb or digit is obvious, and some birth injuries are also obvious, other conditions, such as vision or hearing problems, may not be as obvious. They may also not fully appear until later. A baby’s vision, in particular, is still limited to black and white, with no ability to focus and no coordination until they are a little older, even when they are born full-term. However, when your baby is born too soon, they may be born with a condition called retinopathy of prematurity. This condition can be made worse by medical negligence on the part of any of the medical providers involved in your new baby’s care. If your baby has suffered vision loss and you believe a healthcare provider is responsible, an experienced New Mexico medical malpractice attorney with Erin Marshall Law may be able to represent you and seek the justice you deserve under the law. Call (505) 218-9949 to book a consultation and review the details of your case to learn more about your legal rights and options.
What Is Retinopathy of Prematurity?
Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), also called retrolental fibroplasia (RLF), is an eye disease that can potentially cause blindness in primarily premature infants. Specifically, it tends to affect infants weighing approximately 2 ¾ pounds or less and born before 31 weeks of gestation.
How Premature Birth Causes ROP
Starting in the sixteenth week of pregnancy, the center of the developing baby’s retina begins growing blood vessels. These vessels then branch outward to reach the edge of the retina between eight months and when the baby reaches full-term. However, when a baby is born early, or prematurely, this normal growth is disturbed and can cause abnormal vessels to grow.
This can result in lifetime issues with vision and potential blindness. Typically, ROP occurs in both eyes. ROP is one of the primary causes of vision loss during childhood.
Other Causes of ROP
While premature birth is the most common cause of ROP, other circumstances can result in the condition. Hypoxia, such as being deprived of oxygen during a difficult labor and delivery, may also cause ROP. Poor weight gain, respiratory distress and other breathing difficulties, transfusions, slow heart rates, and anemia can also cause ROP. Some of these causes, such as hypoxia, may be medical negligence for which the family can hold healthcare providers liable.
Symptoms of ROP
The National Eye Institute indicates that there are often no visible symptoms of ROP. This makes sense, as most symptoms take place in the eye itself. There are a few symptoms that may be noticed, such as white pupils, vision loss, or unusual eye movements. If the baby is diagnosed with ROP and loses some vision or becomes completely blind, there may be other symptoms that eventually present themselves.
ROP has a typically predictable and sequential nature of progression, which makes it possible to identify infants who are at risk of ROP. With carefully timed retinal examinations to identify cases of ROP that require treatment, these babies can be identified in time for treatment to be effective, even if they do not present any symptoms. The exam schedule is based on the infant’s gestational age at birth and the subsequent presence and severity of the disease. All New Mexico pediatricians and other primary care physicians involved in the at-risk infant’s care should be aware of the schedule, as should the parents, to ensure the baby is adequately tested. The typical schedule for these exams begins with the first exam approximately four to nine weeks after the baby’s birth, with possible follow-up exams occurring every one to three weeks after that until there is no longer any concern about the baby developing ROP.
How Do I Know If Medical Negligence Caused My Baby’s ROP?
Proving that pediatric medical negligence is responsible for a baby’s retinopathy of prematurity or that negligence caused the condition to progress and become worse than it would have otherwise can be challenging. If the baby was born prematurely, there may be nothing that doctors could have done, as the condition is not preventable, which can be difficult to accept.
However, the progression of the condition may be preventable. If a doctor failed to monitor the mother properly, or an ophthalmologist failed to treat the baby properly or promptly, that may have caused the condition or the progression of the condition. For example, if healthcare providers did not run the appropriate tests, did not listen when a parent said the baby had white pupils, or did not notice unusual eye movements, this may be medical negligence that the parents can pursue.
In many cases, there are obvious signs of birth injuries or other conditions, such as bruises or lacerations. These may be more easily traced to a specific action taken or not taken by a provider. ROP can be difficult for parents to recognize or to identify what they think a provider did or did not do that may have caused it or its progression. The only real way for parents to know if medical negligence may be responsible for their baby’s condition is to review the case with a pediatric medical malpractice attorney at Erin Marshall Law. Our attorneys have experience with ROP due to negligence by healthcare providers. We may be able to review your case, identify any liable providers and the actions they took or did not take that led to the condition, and represent you in holding the providers responsible.
Treatment for ROP
The American Society of Retina Specialists recommends laser surgery that carefully places laser burns in the retinal areas that did not develop normal blood vessels. In 90% of treated eyes, this results in no long-term side effects and prevents retinal detachment. Other potential treatments include:
- Medicine injected into the eye
- Vitrectomy to replace the vitreous in the eye with a saline solution that removes scar tissue and prevents the retina from pulling away
- Scleral buckling to position a silicone or other kind of flexible band around the sclera of the eye and press the torn retina closer to the baby’s eye’s outer wall
If the baby develops vision loss or blindness, they may require lifelong treatment. This can also include the use of medical equipment such as canes, medical devices, or a guide dog. While most treatments are covered by insurance, the exact amounts of coverage will vary depending on the type of insurance and the particular details of the policy itself.
Possible Compensation for ROP Caused By Medical Negligence
There are no guarantees regarding how much compensation a family may receive if they are successful in their medical negligence claim. However, there are specific damages for which the family can request compensation in their claim. These damages include:
- Medical bills, including those for diagnosis and treatment of ROP
- Loss of companionship and enjoyment of life
- Pain and suffering on the baby’s behalf
- Future medical care, particularly in cases where the baby suffers from vision loss or blindness
- Loss of earning capacity
- Emotional trauma
- In-home medical equipment, assistive medical devices, and required medications
There may be other damages that a family can include in their claim based on the details of their case. An attorney may be able to work with the family to determine which damages to ask for and how much to request for each. An attorney may also be able to assist the family with filing their claim before the New Mexico statute of limitations expires. Section 41-5-13 (2021) of the New Mexico Statutes generally provides three years from the date of injury to file a claim, but this limit may be extended for minors.
How a New Mexico Medical Negligence Attorney Can Assist You
The birth of a premature baby can be frightening enough for new parents. Learning that your baby might suffer a condition that can cause vision loss or complete blindness can feel devastating. Finding out that this condition may have been caused or worsened by a provider’s negligence adds anger to a mix of already confusing emotions. A medical malpractice attorney with Erin Marshall Law may be able to assist you and your family with determining if medical negligence caused or worsened your infant’s retinopathy of prematurity, identifying the liable providers, gathering the evidence needed to prove their liability, and representing you during settlement negotiations or a court case to seek the financial compensation you deserve under the law. Call (505) 218-9949 to meet with an attorney in our Albuquerque office and review your case and discuss your legal rights and options.
