Shaken baby syndrome is the primary cause of child abuse deaths in the United States. Shaken baby syndrome leads to traumatic brain injuries in babies and occurs when a baby has been shaken violently or has received a blow to the head. The whiplash from shaking a baby causes the brain to rattle around in the head, which brings about bruising, swelling, and bleeding. According to The National Center On Shaken Baby Syndrome, shaken baby syndrome generally occurs when babies are under one year of age.
Know the Signs
The Fairfax brain injury attorneys at Shevlin Smith understand complex brain injury cases, such as those associated with shaken baby syndrome. If your baby has any of the following symptoms of shaken baby syndrome, seek medical treatment immediately:
- Very lethargic
- Extreme irritability
- Difficulty breathing
- Will not eat
- Vomiting
- Convulsions
- Loss of consciousness
- Bleeding in one or both eyes
- Pale or bluish skin color
Sometimes these symptoms appear right away and other times these symptoms develop over a few days. Your baby does not have to suffer from all of these symptoms in order to have been injured from being shaken. Sadly, shaken baby syndrome often has long-term and serious repercussions on your baby’s development, if your baby has even survived this abuse.
Contact Local Fairfax Birth Injury Lawyers For Help
At Shevlin Smith, our experienced Virginia brain injury attorneys are here for you if your baby was injured from shaken baby syndrome. Call our Fairfax office at 703-721-4233. If you live in Virginia or Washington DC, don’t wait for the medical bills to start piling up before you call our office. We understand your concerns for your baby and the enormous amount of stress you are dealing with; we are concerned too. Please call our office for assistance, we want to help you through this difficult time.