Was Your Child Born With Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy Due To Medical Negligence?

Last updated on July 2, 2025

If your child developed hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) due to health care provider negligence before, during or after childbirth, your child may be entitled to compensation for the injury sustained.

Under Indiana law, children who sustain preventable injuries have the right to take legal action against negligent health care providers. In cases involving preventable birth injuries like HIE, for example, families can pursue civil medical malpractice claims to hold negligent health care providers responsible for failures to comply with reasonable standards of health care and liable for resulting damages.

The Cline Law Firm is an award-winning trial practice known nationally for litigating complex medical malpractice and birth injury cases. We have decades of experience in this litigation and a record of obtaining millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for these cases. Led by attorney Lance D. Cline, one of only three Indiana lawyers ever invited into the prestigious Inner Circle of Advocates, the nation’s most exclusive group of plaintiff trial attorneys, in its 50-plus-year history.

Learn more about your rights and options during a free consultation with an Indianapolis HIE attorney from our team. Call 317-505-1760 or contact us online today.

What Is Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy?

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is a serious neurological condition that occurs when there is a lack of flow of adequately oxygenated blood to the brain of a baby during the labor and/or delivery process. This condition can lead to brain damage, long-term neurological complications and lifelong disabilities.

HIE typically occurs during childbirth where circumstances exist that interfere with the baby’s oxygen supply. These situations may include umbilical cord issues (cord compression or prolapse) that restrict oxygen supply, placental complications (abruption of placenta or placenta previa) that disrupt blood flow to the baby’s brain, prolonged labor and maternal factors such as low and high blood pressure.

HIE can be the result of acts or inaction by medical professionals who fail to comply with reasonable standards of medical and nursing care before, during or after childbirth.

How Negligence Can Cause Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE)

Many cases of HIE are the result of preventable medical errors and negligence. For example:

1. Failure to properly monitor the fetal heart rate of a baby during labor: Health care providers must carefully monitor the fetal heart rate for signs of fetal distress during labor. Failure to recognize and respond to signs of fetal distress such as abnormal heart rate patterns can result in prolonged oxygen deprivation and HIE.
2. Delayed or improper delivery: In cases where complications arise such as umbilical cord compression, umbilical cord prolapse or placental abruption, timely obstetrical intervention is critically important. Failure to promptly deliver the baby, either through emergency cesarean section or other appropriate means, can lead to prolonged oxygen deprivation and HIE.
3. Mismanagement of labor and delivery: Medical professionals must follow established protocols and guidelines during labor and delivery to ensure the safety of both the mother and the baby. Deviating from these standards of care can increase the risk of HIE.
4. Improper use of labor-inducing drugs: Labor-inducing drugs, such as Pitocin, present serious risks of injury to a baby. That is why health care providers must provide reasonable care in determining whether, when, and how to administer these medications during labor. Failures in determining whether, when and how to administer these drugs can result in complications that lead to oxygen deprivation in the baby.

In cases where medical negligence causes HIE in a newborn, the baby has the right to pursue legal action against the responsible health care providers. Our experienced Carmel HIE injury attorneys can review the circumstances surrounding your child’s birth to determine if your child has a meritorious health care negligence claim.

Common Disabilities Caused By HIE

Babies born with HIE can experience a range of symptoms and impairments depending on the severity and length of oxygen deprivation. Common symptoms include seizures, feeding difficulties, weakness or poor muscle tone, breathing difficulties, and lethargy.

In the most serious cases, HIE can result in severe brain damage and considerable physical and mental disabilities. Some of these disabilities include:

• Cerebral palsy, a group of movement disorders caused by damage to the brain.
• Developmental delays, including cognitive and motor skill delays.
• Epilepsy, a condition involving recurring seizures due to abnormal brain activity.
• Vision or hearing impairments resulting from brain damage.

Living With HIE: Long-Term Effects

The long-term effects of HIE can be profound, affecting not only the child but also his or her family and caregivers. These effects may include:

• Financial strain due to costs of medical treatment, therapies and ongoing care
• Lost income for the child and parents who miss work or leave the workforce to care for their child
• Emotional anguish sustained by parents coping with the child’s disabilities and by the child as he or she grows and learns to live with limitations
• Educational challenges
• Physical limitations that impact the child’s ability to participate in activities of daily life

Navigating these long-term effects requires substantial support and resources that are expensive. If you suspect that your child’s HIE may have been caused by negligent health care, then it is worth investigating whether your child’s injuries and impairments have been caused by medical negligence during pregnancy or during the labor and delivery process.

When You Should Work With An Experienced HIE Lawyer

Birth injury lawsuits are among the most complex types of cases in our country’s civil justice system. They involve profound injuries affecting newborns, concern highly technical issues of law and medicine, and are commonly defended against aggressively by health care providers and their medical malpractice insurance carriers.

Given the challenges inherent to these cases – and the importance of securing compensation that will allow families to care for and support their children as they grow – it is important to have the right legal counsel representing your child.

At The Cline Law Firm, we have devoted our practice to handling complex and consequential cases like HIE birth injury lawsuits. We know how to represent and support our clients through every step of this important and difficult litigation journey.

Speak With An Indianapolis HIE Attorney Today

Our attorneys are frequently trusted to handle all types of birth injury and medical malpractice claims and proudly serve Indiana families in this litigation. As our case results show, we know how to effectively advocate for our clients who have sustained tragic harms and losses and how to secure the top-dollar results such clients deserve. Contact us today for a free consultation. We serve all of Indiana.