What is Shaken Baby Syndrome?
Most people are aware that the proper way to hold an infant includes supporting the neck and head. This is because newborns’ weak neck muscles cannot support their heads, which can actually account for up to 25% of their body weight. Sadly, if a person fails to hold a child properly or even throws, shakes, or drops the infant, it can lead to permanent brain damage.
Shaken baby syndrome, or SBS, occurs when a child is violently shaken or handled in a way that results in a traumatic brain injury. Unfortunately, sometimes your precious son or daughter can suffer this terrible mistreatment at the hands of a daycare worker. If your child’s caretaker has mishandled your infant, resulting in SBS, please contact a tenacious Jacksonville shaken baby syndrome attorney from the Law Offices of Donald Guthrie, P.A., today at 904-296-1088.
How Shaken Baby Syndrome Happens
SBS is also called abusive head trauma, or AHT, because it is often caused by a frustrated caregiver. Shaking or otherwise mishandling a baby can knock the brain against the inside of the skull. This can cause subdural hemorrhaging, or bleeding in the brain. Other injuries associated with SBS are neck injuries, spinal cord injuries, and bone fractures. The effects of these injuries are often devastating and irreversible.
Signs of Shaken Baby Syndrome
A victim of shaken baby syndrome should be taken to an emergency room for immediate treatment. Unfortunately, there is often no external evidence that anything out of the ordinary has occurred. The more subtle signs of this mistreatment may include:
- Irritability
- Difficulty feeding
- Labored breathing
The prognosis for SBS is often unfavorable. Thus, it is of utmost importance that parents pay attention to any changes in their child’s behavior after they have been in the care of another person.
Contact Us
If your child has been victimized at the hands of a negligent caregiver and now suffers from shaken baby syndrome, you can fight back. Contact the Jacksonville daycare injury lawyers at the Law Offices of Donald Guthrie, P.A., today at 904-296-1088 to discuss your case.