Most people probably already know that different people can have different blood “types,” and that getting an infusion of blood which does not match the type of the blood of your body can sometimes result in serious injuries and illnesses. What you may not know, though, is that an expecting mother can sometimes have a different blood type than her fetus, a problem usually referred to as “Rh incompatibility.”
This is a very serious pregnancy complication that can have severe and even life-threatening effects on both mother and child unless it is properly addressed by medical professionals. If you or your child suffered serious harm due to Rh incompatibility malpractice in Connecticut, you should reach out to a skilled birth injury lawyer at Berkowitz Hanna sooner rather than later to discuss the possibility of civil litigation over your injuries.
Some people have a protein in their blood passed down genetically from their parents called the “Rh factor,” while other people do not. The former type of person is “Rh-positive,” and the latter is “Rh-negative”—hence, the “positive (+)” or “negative (-)” modifier attached to the blood types “A,” “B,” “AB,” and “O,” which are differentiated by certain “antigens” either being present or not present in the blood. Rh incompatibility occurs when a pregnant mother has Rh-negative blood while her baby has Rh-positive blood.
For the most part, maternal and fetal blood do not come into contact with each other while the mother is pregnant, and even if they do, the antibodies produced by the mother’s body in response to the Rh factor in the baby’s blood typically will not cause a strong enough immune response to cause any serious problems if it is the first time the mother’s body has encountered this problem. However, if a mother’s body already has antibodies in it primed to attack Rh factor, contact with her baby’s Rh-positive blood during pregnancy could cause a dangerous immune response that could damage or destroy red blood cells in both the mother and child. This can lead to jaundice, anemia, and other problems, which could have life-threatening consequences.
Doctors in Connecticut who fail to properly identify symptoms of Rh incompatibility and address the problem before it can cause preventable injuries to a pregnant mother or her fetus may have violated the “standard of care” they owe to all their patients. This standard of care is based on what an equally qualified physician would have done if faced with the same situation with the same patient. Someone who injures a patient through such a “breach” has committed medical malpractice and may be civilly liable for all ensuing damages caused by their misconduct, including:
A seasoned Connecticut lawyer can explain how Rh incompatibility malpractice litigation works in practice and offer guidance about potential filing options during a free initial consultation.
Thanks to various advancements made in medical knowledge and technology, Rh incompatibility is fairly easy to diagnose and treat in many situations. If it is not identified and properly addressed, though, it can have devastating repercussions for a mother or her child.
You are not to blame for your physician’s misconduct, and you have help available in holding that physician accountable for their actions from a dedicated and dependable medical malpractice lawyer. Call today to learn how Berkowitz Hanna can help with an Rh incompatibility malpractice claim in Connecticut.
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