Category Archives: Articles
New Study Finds a Link Between Cerebral Palsy and Autism
Cerebral palsy is already a serious condition requiring lifelong treatment. Now a new study has found a link between cerebral palsy and higher rates of autism. Currently, in the United States, one in every 323 eight-year-old children has cerebral palsy (compared to 500,000 to 800,000 people overall). The study by the U.S. Center for… Read More »
New Study Suggests That Maternal Weight Is Linked to Maternal Hypertension
While the causes of preeclampsia, or maternal hypertension, are usually unknown, one recent study suggests that one cause can be linked to this condition: obesity. A study published by the University of Edinburgh in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology found that women with a higher BMI experience more complications and in-patient… Read More »
Maryland Applies Different Cap on Noneconomic Damages in Medical Malpractice Claims than in Other Personal Injury Claims
Maryland, along with many other U.S. states, imposes caps on the amount of noneconomic damages that juries may award in personal injury lawsuits. This limits the amounts that plaintiffs may recover for damages that are not directly related to the injury, such as pain and suffering or mental anguish. The cap has been lower… Read More »
Medical Malpractice Case Allowed to Proceed Against Cardiologist, After Court Reviews Question of When Plaintiff
A federal district court in Maryland denied motions to dismiss a lawsuit alleging medical malpractice and fraud against a cardiologist and the medical center where he treated the plaintiff. The defendants claimed that the plaintiff in Peacock v. Peninsula Regional Medical Center, et al did not file his lawsuit within the time limit set… Read More »
Pennsylvania Woman and Her Child Win $4 Million Award for Birth Injury Caused By Medical Negligence
Recently, a jury in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania awarded a woman and her daughter $4 million for a birth injury attributed to an obstetrician’s negligence. The doctor ignored Erin McCarthy when she expressed concerns that her daughter might be too large to deliver vaginally. McCarthy’s daughter, Chloe, was born in 2009 at Lehigh Valley Hospital…. Read More »
Recent Article Argues That Birth Injury Lawsuits Are Beneficial, While Tort Reforms May Be Harmful, to the Medical Profession
A recent article challenges the notion that big malpractice awards, for birth injury or otherwise, automatically cause problems for the medical profession. While the article focuses mainly on New York malpractice law, it is instructive for medical practitioners in every other state, including Maryland. Unlike Maryland, New York does not have a cap on… Read More »
Contributory Negligence Doctrine Upheld in Maryland, Barring Recovery in Medical Malpractice Cases Where Defendant Was Not 100% at Fault
Unfortunately, Maryland is one of only a few states in the U.S. that continues to follow the “contributory negligence” doctrine, which affects the rights of every patient who has ever suffered due to medical malpractice. Most states, when a defendant is found liable for negligence, determine damages by apportioning fault between the defendant and… Read More »
Teen Who Went Blind As a Newborn Due to Medical Neglect Is Now Thriving
Retinopathy of prematurity, also known as “baby blindness,” is a serious condition that causes blindness in babies born earlier than 30 weeks of gestation. This is due to the fact that their blood vessels have not yet formed — or formed abnormally if the premature babies were given oxygen that was not properly monitored…. Read More »
Appellate Court Considers Whether Urology and Nephrology Are
A Maryland court dismissed a medical malpractice case, ruling that the plaintiff did not produce a “qualified expert” as required by Maryland law. The Maryland Court of Special Appeals reversed the trial court’s ruling in Nance v. Gordon. State law requires a plaintiff, prior to filing a medical malpractice lawsuit, to produce an expert… Read More »
Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals Rules That Illinois Mother Is Time-Barred From Filing a Medical Malpractice Claim in Arteaga v. United States
A Seventh Circuit case from earlier this year highlights the importance of learning about the statute of limitations before you file a medical malpractice lawsuit for birth injury. In Arteaga v. United States, an Illinois mother was barred from filing a claim on behalf of her child due to a provision in the Federal… Read More »
