A Wisconsin medical malpractice jury determined in mid-February 2025 that a hospital negligently used Pitocin during labor and delivery that led to the newborn baby suffering permanent brain damage. The now six-year-old child was diagnosed with cerebral palsy shortly before her second birthday and is now nonverbal.
The mother alleged that she was not told that the doctors were going to use Pitocin to hasten her delivery. When the baby was born, she was flaccid and had to be revived. Scans both before and after birth showed that the baby had suffered a brain injury, which was determined to have been caused by the use of Pitocin. The Wisconsin birth injury medical malpractice lawsuit alleged that the dosage of Pitocin used was too high, and that the Pitocin caused stronger contractions and too many contractions, which led to the baby’s brain damage.
The plaintiff’s Wisconsin medical malpractice lawyer stated after the verdict, “It’s totally preventable, and it’s not anybody’s trying to hurt anybody else. It’s truly carelessness, negligence. Some moms will get a lot of it and have no reaction at all. Some moms will get very little doses of it and have a very profound reaction. So, in this particular case, they gave a relatively high dose of the drug… that caused too many contractions, which occurred for many hours,.”
The plaintiff stated, “It was just very confusing, and I just felt like I wasn’t being – they weren’t telling me what was going on as much as they should have. That’s how I felt.”
Pitocin
Pitocin (oxytocin injection, USP) is a sterile, clear, colorless aqueous solution of synthetic oxytocin, for intravenous infusion or intramuscular injection. Pitocin is indicated for the initiation or improvement of uterine contractions, where this is desirable and considered suitable for reasons of fetal or maternal concern, in order to achieve vaginal delivery. It is indicated for (1) induction of labor in patients with a medical indication for the initiation of labor, such as Rh problems, maternal diabetes, preeclampsia at or near term, when delivery is in the best interests of mother and fetus or when membranes are prematurely ruptured and delivery is indicated; (2) stimulation or reinforcement of labor, as in selected cases of uterine inertia; (3) as adjunctive therapy in the management of incomplete or inevitable abortion.
The drug label for Pitocin warns: Elective induction of labor is defined as the initiation of labor in a pregnant individual
who has no medical indications for induction. Since the available data are inadequate to evaluate the benefits-to-risks considerations, Pitocin is not indicated for elective induction of labor … Pitocin, when given for induction of labor or augmentation of uterine activity, should be administered only by the intravenous route and with adequate medical supervision in a hospital … All patients receiving intravenous oxytocin must be under continuous observation by trained personnel who have a thorough knowledge of the drug and are qualified to identify complications. A physician qualified to manage any complications should be immediately available … Discontinue the infusion of Pitocin immediately in the event of uterine hyperactivity and/or fetal distress. Administer oxygen to the mother, who preferably should be put in a lateral position. The condition of mother and fetus should immediately be evaluated by the responsible physician and appropriate steps taken.
If you or your baby suffered a birth injury (or worse) during labor and/or delivery in Wisconsin or in another U.S. state, you should promptly find a birth injury lawyer in Wisconsin or in your state who may investigate your birth injury claim for you and represent you and your child in a birth injury medical malpractice case, if appropriate.
Click on the “Contact Us Now” tab to the right, visit our website, or call us toll-free in the United States at 800-295-3959 to find birth injury attorneys in your state who may assist you.
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