Erb's palsy happens when the network of nerves that supply a child's shoulder and arm are stretched or torn. Sometimes called "brachial plexus injury", Erb's palsy can happen at any time. However, most cases are the result of mishaps during the birthing process.

A brachial plexus injury usually occurs after a baby's shoulder gets stuck behind its mother's pubic bone - if the proper techniques aren't used during delivery.

Erb's palsy occurs in approximately 1 or 2 out of every 1,000 child births. Although the prognosis for these children will depend primarily on the type of injury sustained, most babies who suffer a brachial plexus injury will fully recover use of their arm(s).

A number of additional factors may also increase the risk of unsuitable delivery techniques that could result in Erb's palsy. They include:

- A breech birth. This happens when the baby's buttocks rather than the baby's head are delivered first.

- A high birth weight baby.

- A diabetic mother (diabetes increases the chance of having high birth weight babies).

- An obese mother (this also increases the probability of having a high birth weight baby).

- Using force to pull the baby out of the birth canal. This procedure usually involves forceps or vacuum extraction.

- Prolonged labor.

What are the Types of Brachial Plexus Injuries?

There are four types of this kind of trauma.

1. The most common is called neurapraxia. Neurapraxia happens if the nerve is damaged but is not torn.

2. When the nerve is torn a rupture occurs. However if the nerve is ruptured it still isn't separated from the baby's spine.

3. The most severe type of Erb's palsy occurs when there is an avulsion. This happens when the nerve is torn from the child's spine.

4. When scar tissue grows around the injury neroma occurs. Because the scar tissue puts pressure on the nerve that has been injured it interferes with its ability to send signals to the baby's muscles.

If your child has Erb's palsy it may have been the result of medical negligence that occurred while you were giving birth. Since it would be pretty much impossible for a parent to ascertain whether or not the injury was a result of medical negligence, many parents turn to an attorney who specializes in matters such as these to help them.

A number of experienced legal firms offer free, no-obligation consultation pertaining to birth injuries. A simple search of the world wide web will yield a substantial number of firms that you can contact.