Fertility
The misuse of fertility medications leading to multiple births, which have a high risk of resulting in babies with cerebral palsy or other brain injuries.
Infertility
Fertility treatments have become increasingly popular in recent years, particularly as couples marry later in life and wait longer to have children. Infertility can be due to the woman, the man or both. Fertility treatments can often be the miracle that parents are looking for. However, fertility drugs and other treatments can have serious consequences if used incorrectly.
Overly aggressive and inappropriate use of fertility drugs such as Clomid (serophene) can result in multiple births (twins, triplets, etc.), which can put the health of both the babies and the mother at risk. Pregnancies involving multiple babies are at much greater risk for premature birth, which in turn can lead to serious disabilities including cerebral palsy.
Fertility treatments can go wrong in other ways. For example, serious injuries can occur during egg harvesting and fertilized embryos can be mixed up.
Sterilization/Permanent Birth Control
Failed sterilization can result in an unplanned pregnancy. The birth of an unplanned child can be financially devastating for many families. Often one of the main reasons that individuals choose sterilization in the first place is to avoid the increasingly high costs of raising a child.
Sterilization procedures of both men and women can be negligently performed.
A tubal ligation is the most common operation to sterilize women. It is abdominal surgery that involves blocking the tubes that prevents eggs from entering the uterus. It is commonly referred to as having one’s “tubes tied.” Tubal ligation should be 99 percent effective.
Early failures can point to a mistake in technique. However, determining if an error has been made often requires a subsequent procedure to examine the tubes to see the point of failure. This often happens if a woman decides to deliver the baby by C-section or decides to have another tubal ligation. The evidence obtained in this second procedure is often critical to proving that a mistake has been made.
A vasectomy is a surgical procedure for male sterilization. Vasectomy can be incorrectly performed, leading to incomplete sterilization. In any vasectomy, it is critically important that the physician request and received two negative semen tests to ensure the success of the operation: one close in time to the procedure and another at least three months later.
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