If your baby suffered fetal acidosis during delivery in Odenton, you deserve clear answers and strong legal help. Jonathan Schochor and Kerry Staton lead our birth-injury practice at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea, P.A., and we are ready to guide your family toward accountability and support.
Take the first step toward answers and accountability. Call 443-909-2792 or send us a secure message now for a free, no-obligation case review with our Odenton fetal acidosis attorneys. We’re ready to listen, explain your options, and fight for your child’s future.
What Is Fetal Acidosis and Why Does It Happen?
Fetal acidosis is a buildup of acid in a newborn’s blood caused by oxygen deprivation before or during birth. The condition is typically confirmed when a baby’s umbilical cord blood shows a pH below 7.35.
Common causes of fetal acidosis include:
- Umbilical cord problems such as compression, prolapse, or the cord wrapping around the baby’s neck.
- Placental insufficiency or abruptions that block oxygen flow.
- Prolonged or obstructed labor where shoulder dystocia or a large baby delays delivery.
- Misuse of labor drugs like excessive Pitocin that overstimulates contractions.
- Maternal emergencies such as severe hypotension or untreated anemia.
These events deprive the fetus of oxygen, causing carbon dioxide levels to rise and acid to accumulate. Quick medical responses usually prevent permanent harm, so avoidable delays raise serious red flags.
How Can You Tell If Your Baby Was in Distress or Acidosis?
Doctors and nurses should recognize fetal distress long before injury occurs. Warning signs include an abnormal fetal heart rhythm, meconium-stained amniotic fluid, weak or absent movement during labor, and a low Apgar score at one and five minutes.
After birth, a blue or floppy appearance, seizures, or the need for immediate resuscitation may signal that fetal acidosis occurred. When these indicators were present yet unaddressed, an Odenton fetal acidosis attorney at our firm can investigate whether proper protocols were ignored.
Could Fetal Acidosis Have Been Prevented?
Many fetal acidosis injuries are avoidable when providers follow accepted standards of care. Continuous electronic monitoring, maternal oxygen, IV fluids, or simply repositioning the mother can restore fetal oxygenation quickly.
If distress persists, an emergency C-section should be ordered without delay. Failure to take these straightforward steps can breach the medical standard and expose infants to irreversible brain damage. As Odenton fetal acidosis lawyers, we analyze every action—or inaction—to see where prevention broke down.
What Injuries Can Fetal Acidosis Cause?
When oxygen starvation lasts more than a few minutes, permanent harm is likely. Potential outcomes include:
- Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) leading to lifelong motor or cognitive impairments.
- Cerebral palsy affecting movement, speech, or sensory functions.
- Seizure disorders and developmental delays.
- Organ damage to the heart, kidneys, or liver.
- Stillbirth or neonatal death in the most severe cases.
These conditions demand expensive medical care, therapy, and adaptive equipment—costs no family should shoulder alone when negligence is to blame.
Did Medical Negligence Cause Your Baby’s Fetal Acidosis?
Medical negligence occurs when caregivers deviate from what reasonably careful professionals would do under the same circumstances. Typical errors we uncover include ignoring abnormal monitor tracings, delaying a necessary C-section, or overdosing Pitocin despite signs of hyper-stimulation.
To prove malpractice we establish four elements: duty (a doctor-patient relationship), breach (sub-standard care), causation (the breach caused acidosis and injury), and damages (your child’s measurable losses). Birth injury lawyer Jonathan Schochor routinely works with leading obstetrical experts to tie these pieces together in court.
How an Odenton Fetal Acidosis Lawyer Can Help Your Family
From the first free consultation, we secure complete medical records, interview staff, and retain specialists who explain exactly when and how oxygen loss occurred. Attorney Kerry Staton has spent more than three decades confronting hospitals and insurers that refuse to accept fault.
We prepare every claim for trial, showing juries the lifetime cost of therapies, surgeries, education, and caregiving. Because we work on contingency, you owe no fees unless we obtain a settlement or verdict that supports your child’s future.
Serving Odenton and Surrounding Communities
Odenton families often deliver at Anne Arundel Medical Center in Annapolis or UM Baltimore Washington Medical Center in Glen Burnie, both minutes from Fort Meade and Piney Orchard. Our office at 1211 St Paul St, Baltimore, MD 21202 is a short drive up MD-295, and virtual meetings are always available.
The Odenton fetal acidosis attorneys at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea proudly serve Gambrills, Severn, Crofton, Millersville, Bowie, and Laurel.
Why Choose Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea for Your Birth-Injury Case?
Decades of Maryland Experience
We have represented injured patients since 1984 and recovered more than $1 billion in verdicts and settlements.
Proven Results
Our team secured a seven-figure recovery for a child who developed cerebral palsy after an unnecessary two-hour delay in ordering a C-section.
Personal Attention
When you call, you speak directly with Odenton birth-injury lawyer Jonathan Schochor or fetal acidosis attorney Kerry Staton, not a call center operator. We listen, explain your options, and craft a strategy tailored to your goals.
Recognized Leadership
Both attorneys appear annually in Best Lawyers in America and Maryland Super Lawyers, reflecting peer respect and courtroom success.
What Compensation Can We Recover for a Birth Injury?
Compensation in Maryland birth-injury cases can include:
- Lifetime medical and rehabilitation expenses.
- Adaptive equipment and home modifications.
- Lost future earning capacity and parental income lost while providing care.
- Non-economic damages for pain, suffering, and loss of life’s pleasures (subject to Maryland caps).
Our Odenton fetal acidosis lawyers pursue every available category of damages because your child’s quality of life depends on it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
My doctor never used the term “fetal acidosis.” How can I know it happened?
Umbilical cord blood gases, NICU records, or a diagnosis of HIE often confirm acidosis even if parents were not told. We obtain and review these records with medical experts.
How long do I have to file a claim
Maryland generally allows up to five years from the injury, or three years from when it is discovered, with additional time for a minor. Acting quickly protects your rights.
What does it cost to hire you?
There is no upfront cost. We advance all litigation expenses and collect a fee only if we win compensation for your family.
Call for a Free Consultation
Your family should not carry the burden of a preventable birth injury alone. Call 443-909-2792 now to speak with an Odenton fetal acidosis attorney at Schochor, Staton, Goldberg and Cardea, P.A. or request a virtual meeting. The consultation is free, and you pay nothing unless we secure justice for your child.