Shoulder dystocia — a baby’s shoulder caught behind the mother’s pelvic bone after the head delivers — is a genuine obstetric emergency with a genuine playbook: McRoberts positioning, suprapubic pressure, rotational maneuvers, and delivery of the posterior arm. What the playbook never includes is pulling harder on the baby’s head. Mismanaged dystocia causes brachial plexus injuries, fractured clavicles and humeri, and, when the cord stays compressed too long, oxygen deprivation and brain injury.
Shoulder Dystocia Claims: Key Facts
- Anticipation duties: Macrosomia (large baby), maternal diabetes, prior dystocia, and prolonged labor are known risk factors that require planning – and in some combinations, an offered C-section.
- The maneuver record: Delivery notes must document which maneuvers were used and in what order. Sparse or after-the-fact notes speak volumes.
- Injury patterns testify: Severe brachial plexus injury on the anterior shoulder after documented dystocia is the signature of excessive traction.
- Both patients matter: Mothers suffer injuries in mismanaged dystocia too – severe tears, hemorrhage, and trauma with lasting effects.
How These Cases Are Proven
We reconstruct the delivery minute by minute from nursing entries, the delivery note, and staff depositions – then obstetric experts assess whether risk factors demanded different planning and whether the emergency was managed within the standard of care. The baby’s injury pattern, read by pediatric neurologists, closes the loop on how much force was actually applied.
Related: Birth Injuries, Erb’s Palsy & Brachial Plexus, Maternal Birth Injuries.
Shoulder Dystocia FAQs
The records say dystocia was “managed with standard maneuvers.” Case over?
No – that phrase appears in nearly every dystocia note, including the mismanaged ones. The injury pattern and timeline test whether the note matches what actually happened.
We were never offered a C-section despite a very large baby. Is that the case?
Possibly part of it – with significant macrosomia, especially in diabetic pregnancies, counseling about cesarean delivery is part of the standard of care.
The baby’s collarbone broke but healed. Do we still have a claim?
Isolated fractures that heal cleanly are usually modest claims – but they often accompany nerve injuries that surface as the child grows. Have the whole picture evaluated.
A difficult delivery left your child injured? Call (302) 297-7775 for a free consultation.