$3 Million Settlement Reached for Late Diagnosis of Newborn’s Infection, Causing Brain Injury

Baby Doe, a twin, was born at 32 weeks gestation. Baby Doe was admitted to a hospital’s NICU where she remained in stable condition for several days.

Baby Doe developed a low-grade fever, tachycardia and irregular breathing. The next day, Baby Doe’s condition worsened. Her oxygen saturation dipped down to 78 percent, her glucose dramatically increased and her physical movement decreased.

A blood culture led to a diagnosis of bacterial infection, for which Baby Doe was given antibiotics. Within two weeks, Baby Doe was diagnosed as having a brain abscess and underwent surgery.

Doe is now 10 years old and suffers from severe brain damage. She is unable to hold a conversation and will require lifetime care. Baby Doe, through her family, sued the hospital alleging failure to timely diagnose and treat the bacterial infection.

The defendant hospital argued that until the second day of Baby Doe’s worsened condition, she had been stable. The defendant hospital also argued that she would not have avoided brain damage even with an earlier diagnosis. The reasons for that argument were not provided in the report of the case.

The parties settled for $3 million under a confidentiality agreement.

The attorneys successfully representing the Doe family were Jeffrey A. Milman and Benjamin T. Ikuta.

Doe v. Roe Hospital, Confidential Docket.

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling birth trauma injury lawsuits, brain injury lawsuits, labor and delivery negligence lawsuits and misdiagnosis of bacterial infection cases for individuals, families and loved ones who have been harmed, injured or died as a result of the carelessness or negligence of a medical provider for more than 40 years in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Niles, Midlothian, Morton Grove, Northfield, North Riverside, Olympia Fields, Orland Park, Westchester, Western Springs, Willow Springs, Sauk Village, Schaumburg, Prospect Heights, South Chicago Heights, Barrington, Bensenville, Chicago (Grand Boulevard, Garfield Ridge, Englewood, Portage Park, Printer’s Row, Pulaski Park, Ravenswood Manor, Roscoe Village, West Loop, Wrigleyville, Hyde Park, Lithuanian Plaza, Little Italy, Lincoln Park, Belmont Central, Beverly, Bronzeville, Canaryville, Cathedral District, Chinatown), Lake Forest, Lockport, Park Ridge and Northfield, Ill.