Toronto Uterine Rupture Lawyer

Uterine rupture involves the muscular wall of the uterus tearing either during pregnancy or childbirth. Uterine rupture most frequently occurs along healed scar lines in women who have had prior Cesarean section (C-section) deliveries.

Vaginal birth after caesarean section (VBAC) significantly increases the risks of uterine rupture. The mortality of both the mother and her child can be at risk when there is a uterine rupture.

Did you or your child suffer a birth injury because of a uterine rupture in the greater Toronto area? You will want to make sure that you retain legal counsel right away for help pursuing a possible medical malpractice case.

The Toronto uterine rupture injury lawyers of Mazin & Associates, PC can fight to make sure that you are able to recover all of the compensation you are entitled to because of injuries caused by a doctor or hospital’s negligence. Call (416) 625-2122 or contact us online to set up a free consultation.

Do I Need A Uterine Rupture Lawyer?

When you or your child has sustained any kind of injury because of a uterine rupture, you may be entitled to various forms of compensation for your injuries. You will need to prove the negligence of a medical care provider in these cases, and a lawyer will help collect that evidence.

A lawyer does this by conducting an independent investigation to dig into medical records and various other circumstances relating to your medical care. Mazin & Associates, PC will also work with medical experts to get knowledgeable opinions and possible testimony in court.

A doctor or hospital may be very quick to deny liability and claim that injuries were not preventable. Nonetheless, the insurance companies representing such physicians or hospitals may quickly try to present you with a lump sum settlement to resolve your case.

You need to know that any initial settlement offer is likely to be a lowball amount well short of what most victims actually need and deserve. Mazin & Associates, PC will negotiate a settlement that actually covers all of your past, present, and future expenses, but we will not be afraid to file a lawsuit when the settlement negotiations are not producing an acceptable outcome.

Why Choose Mazin & Associates, PC To Handle My Case?

You should choose Mazin & Associates, PC because you will not have to pay anything to have us represent you. Our firm represents clients on a contingency fee basis, which means that you pay nothing unless you obtain a financial award.

Gary Mazin is a member of the Ontario Bar Association, Toronto Lawyers Association, Advocate’s Society, Law Society of Upper Canada, Brain Injury Society of Toronto, Spinal Cord Injury Ontario, Canadian Bar Association, Ontario Trial Lawyer’s Association, and Medico-Legal Society of Toronto as well as the Director at the Brain Injury Association of Peel and Halton. Supriya Sharma graduated with academic distinction with top-tier class ranking while earning a law degree from the University of Wolverhampton Law School in England.

Vasiola Bibolli is a former caseworker with the first Legal Information Service of Thompson Rivers University (TRU) who provided clients with legal information and presented in public legal education workshops, interviewed clients, and researched legal issues. Samara Savdie is the office manager of Mazin & Associates, PC with over 10 years of experience in personal injury law.

Accident Benefits Specialist Olga Kaliada assists clients in getting medical benefits, housekeeping benefits, attendant care, income replacement benefits, and other benefits. Melanie Harvey helps prepare trial records, motion records, and other court documents and has  been a law clerk for Mazin & Associates, PC since 2014.

Types of Uterine Rupture Cases We Handle

The most common causes of uterine ruptures are scars from prior C-sections or other kinds of medical scars. When these scars are known or detected, they should raise immediate concerns about the likelihood of a uterine rupture.

Some of the most common signs of a uterine rupture include:

• Severe localized pain
• Acidosis (overproduction of acid in the baby’s tissue and body fluids)
• Abnormal fetal heart rate
• Fetal hypoxia and anoxia
• Maternal anemia
• Injuries requiring hysterectomy
• Vaginal bleeding
• Severe blood loss
• Weakened uterine muscle tone
• Baby receding back up birth canal from lower position (loss of station)
• Slower and decreasingly intense contractions
• Vaginal hemorrhaging
• Uterine scar pain
• Sudden abdominal pain
• Mother going into shock
• Changes in contraction patterns
• Baby’s head receding while traveling through birth canal
• Intense pain and major discomfort between contractions
• Hemodynamic instability
• Noticeable bulging under the mother’s pubic bone
• Hematuria when rupture extends into bladder
• Maternal bladder injury
• Maternal severe loss of blood
• Maternal low blood pressure

In the worst case scenarios, a uterine rupture could cause fatal injuries to the mother or the child. When the injuries are not fatal, babies can still suffer such injuries as:

• Seizure disorders
• Restricted growth from lack of nutrients
• Neonatal encephalopathy
• Permanent brain damage
• Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy
• Premature birth
• Motor disorders
• Cerebral palsy
• Microcephaly
• Stillbirth
• Learning disabilities
• Periventricular leukomalacia
• Developmental delays
• Stroke
• Death

Proving a uterine rupture case can be exceptionally challenging because many of the symptoms are not specific. Doctors need to know how to identify these injuries as soon as possible and order the proper treatment required in such cases to preserve the health of both the mother and the child.

What are the common causes of uterine ruptures?

Causes of uterine rupture include uterine overdistention or overdistended uterus, which involves a uterus being larger than normal because of too much amniotic fluid or a large baby. Multifetal pregnancy, which is the presence of more than one fetus (such as twins or triplets), and polyhydramnios, which involves excess accumulation of amniotic fluid surrounding the baby in the uterus during pregnancy, can also be common causes. Excessive use of uterotonics, external or internal fetal version (also known as external cephalic version) and failure to identify labor dystocia can also be causes of uterine rupture.

How is a uterine rupture supposed to be treated?

Uterine ruptures are commonly treated with immediate laparotomy with cesarean delivery and, if necessary, hysterectomy. Additional critical care may also be administered to ensure an infant has enough oxygen. When a rupture results in severe blood loss, blood transfusions can be required and the uterus may need to be removed. Following such procedures, women can no longer become pregnant.

Are there ways to prevent uterine rupture?

The surest way to prevent a uterine rupture is to have a C-section delivery. Uterine ruptures cannot be fully prevented when women try to have vaginal births, especially VBACs. If you want to have a vaginal birth after having previously had a C-section delivery, you are going to need work closely with your doctor to minimize your chances of a uterine rupture. It is even better if the doctor who will be handling your vaginal delivery is the same one who performed your Cesarean delivery.

Uterine Rupture Statistics

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) reported that uterine rupture occurs in approximately one of every 67 to 500 women undergoing a trial of labor for vaginal birth after C-section. C-section deliveries accounted for only 5 percent of all deliveries in 1970, but increased to 24.7 percent by 1988 and there are now 1 million cesarean deliveries performed annually. VBAC decreased the C-section rate to 20.8 percent in 1995.

According to the AAFP, the rate of true uterine rupture was reported by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) to be between 0.2 and 1.5 percent (one of 67 to 500 women), but other studies involving over 130,000 women undergoing a trial of labor for VBAC report rates that average 0.6 percent (approximately one of every 170 women). The rate can be as high as 3.9 percent (one of 26 women) for women with two or more cesareans.

The AAFP reported that uterine rupture rates for women with two or more cesareans are threefold to fivefold higher than rates in women having only one prior cesarean delivery. A history of successful vaginal delivery can reduce the risk of rupture from 1.1 to 0.2 percent (one of 511 women).

According to the AAFP, one study of 99 ruptures found that only 13 patients reported pain and 11 had vaginal bleeding. In that study, bradycardia was the sole manifestation of uterine ruptures in five out of five cases, bradycardia and fetal distress were incidental in nine of 11 ruptures, abnormal fetal heart rate tracing was involved in 23 of 70 ruptures, failure to progress was involved in 15 of 70 ruptures, pain was involved in 13 of 99 ruptures, and vaginal bleeding was involved in 11 of 99 ruptures.

Contact a Uterine Rupture Lawyer in Toronto Today

If you or your child sustained a birth injury because of a uterine rupture, take quick action so you can preserve your right to pursue compensation. The insurance company is not on your side and will probably only be willing to give you a fraction of what you are actually entitled to.

The Toronto birth injury lawyers of Mazin & Associates, PC can make sure that your rights are recognized and protected while fighting to help you recover every last dollar available to you. We can review your case and discuss all of your legal options as soon as you call (416) 625-2122 or contact us online to take advantage of a free consultation.