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Just curious if this couple hadn't been young, black and apparently unmarried if this would have happened. I happen to be white and I think if this was me I would have been given a C-section before it went this far. Maybe the couple didn't have insurance so the hospital didn't want to have the cost of surgery?
Just curious if this couple hadn't been young, black and apparently unmarried if this would have happened. I happen to be white and I think if this was me I would have been given a C-section before it went this far. Maybe the couple didn't have insurance so the hospital didn't want to have the cost of surgery?
The doctor is also black.
If mom did not have commercial insurance just being pregnant would make her eligible for Medicaid. Nationally, over 40% of babies are delivered on Medicaid. "The hospital" does not decide whether to do a Cesarean; the obstetrician does.
It's entirely possible the mother waited too long to get to the hospital. Once a delivery has progressed so far, C-section can't be completed (successfully). We don't have all the facts, obviously.
It's entirely possible the mother waited too long to get to the hospital. Once a delivery has progressed so far, C-section can't be completed (successfully). We don't have all the facts, obviously.
She went to the hospital as soon as her water broke.
From what I have read, the baby died before the decapitation, so the decapitation was not the cause of death.
To me, this is a clear case of malpractice and should go through the civil court system, not criminal court.
The mom had pregnancy associated diabetes, which increases the risk of shoulder dystocia about six times. I have not seen the birth weight of the baby mentioned anywhere, but maternal diabetes often results in very large babies, and it is reasonable to speculate a weight of ten pounds or greater.
Fetal weight can be estimated with ultrasound. A large baby and a diabetic mom can be an argument for skipping labor and going directly to Cesarean section. If labor is chosen, once it bogs down allowing it to continue is a recipe for disaster, as seen in this case.
From what I have read, the baby died before the decapitation, so the decapitation was not the cause of death.
To me, this is a clear case of malpractice and should go through the civil court system, not criminal court.
The mom had pregnancy associated diabetes, which increases the risk of shoulder dystocia about six times. I have not seen the birth weight of the baby mentioned anywhere, but maternal diabetes often results in very large babies, and it is reasonable to speculate a weight of ten pounds or greater.
Fetal weight can be estimated with ultrasound. A large baby and a diabetic mom can be an argument for skipping labor and going directly to Cesarean section. If labor is chosen, once it bogs down allowing it to continue is a recipe for disaster, as seen in this case.
It's possible that the doctor recommended a c-section much earlier in the birthing process but the mother refused. If that is the case, I don't see how this could be malpractice.
It's possible that the doctor recommended a c-section much earlier in the birthing process but the mother refused. If that is the case, I don't see how this could be malpractice.
The mother and father were begging for a Cesarean before the baby died. This article says he weighed 7 pounds 6 ounces.
"Ross and Taylor, 21, asked for a cesarean section “while the baby was viable,” Edmond said at a news conference last week, reiterating the allegations in the couple’s suit. Instead, Ross pushed for three hours without delivering her baby, the suit says, and St. Julian tried to deliver it vaginally using different methods, one of which included applying traction to the baby’s head.
According to the lawsuit, the fetal monitor showed an abnormal fetal heartbeat starting at 9:26 p.m., and the heart rate continued to decrease until 10:36 p.m. There was no sign of a fetal heartbeat on the monitoring strips by the time St. Julian performed an emergency C-section at 11:49 p.m., the lawsuit says. The baby’s body was delivered at 12:11 a.m."
This was on Nancy Grace yesterday. I can't even imagine the level of incompetence. Apparently the heartbeat was gone for about an hour before they decided to do a c-section. The couple had been begging for a C-section for hours, after she had pushed for about 7.
It's certainly not uncommon for delivery to take longer than 7 hours; doctors don't just perform C-sections because parents "beg" for one. It has to be medically indicated, and that will all come out in the wash.
Those lamenting how horrible the decapitation was, would you prefer they'd left the body inside the mother?
It's certainly not uncommon for delivery to take longer than 7 hours; doctors don't just perform C-sections because parents "beg" for one. It has to be medically indicated, and that will all come out in the wash.
Those lamenting how horrible the decapitation was, would you prefer they'd left the body inside the mother?
The medical indication for the C section in this case was the accelerated heart rate noted on the fetal heart monitor. That is a clear sign of fetal distress. Often meaning the fetus is not receiving enough oxygen.
The standard of care in such a situation is a rapid C-section. I note in this case the C-section occurred more than two hours after the accelerated heart rate was mentioned. No one could call this "rapid".
A safe vaginal delivery is not possible in some cases and one of the jobs of the physician in charge is to determine when it is not. The article mentions "shoulder dystocia" and that is a condition where attempts at a vaginal delivery should be abandoned and a C section done. I have a hundred questions based on what I have read, but virtually every fact points towards the physician (and the hospital) being negligent here.
As horrible as this case is there are cases that are even worse. Fetal distress sometimes results in a baby being deprived of oxygen to the point where it is born severely brain damaged with conditions like spastic quadriplegia and/or blindness. It is the rare occurrence of such conditions that justifies a fairly high rate of C-sections. In other words, its better to be safe than sorry.
"Ross and Taylor, 21, asked for a cesarean section “while the baby was viable,” Edmond said at a news conference last week, reiterating the allegations in the couple’s suit. Instead, Ross pushed for three hours without delivering her baby, the suit says, and St. Julian tried to deliver it vaginally using different methods, one of which included applying traction to the baby’s head.
According to the lawsuit, the fetal monitor showed an abnormal fetal heartbeat starting at 9:26 p.m., and the heart rate continued to decrease until 10:36 p.m. There was no sign of a fetal heartbeat on the monitoring strips by the time St. Julian performed an emergency C-section at 11:49 p.m., the lawsuit says. The baby’s body was delivered at 12:11 a.m."
I was just about to post the story with the three hours of unsuccessful pushing.
I'm in no way, shape, or form a medical provider let alone an OB. But I do work in medical education with OBs (and other specialties) and run a shoulder dystocia simulation for OB residents and nurses using simulation mannequins.
My understanding is several maneuvers can be tried out before they move to surgical intervention and only a very explicit circumstance. A C-section should only be performed if the baby's head can be manually moved back up out of the canal. If the head cannot be moved back up safely C section is not the standard of care.
The parents can ask all they want for a C-section but if the baby's head is stuck in the canal, then a C-section would not resolve the issue.
I'm not pointing fingers at anyone at this stage of the game. So much is unknown, including if it was dystocia. Everything I read keeps saying "suspected".
I'm also not blaming mom, but maternal obesity and shorter stature are both risk factors for shoulder dystocia.
ETA: Just read this in another article
Quote:
The medical examiner’s office added that pregnancy-induced diabetes and premature rupture of membranes were other significant conditions that contributed to the baby’s death.
Last edited by charmed hour; 02-16-2024 at 12:54 PM..
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