What Is A Hip Dysplasia Birth Injury?
Known as developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), this is an abnormality in how the hip grows. Typically, the hip joint in a young person grows when they start walking with the pounding down of the acetabulum, which is the cup of the hip joint, onto the femur. That constant contact down creates this cup-like situation where the femur sits into the hip and allows us free movement of both of our legs. There's many different forms of dysplasia, but what it ultimately means is that this cup joint has not properly formed.
Hip Dysplasia Birth Injury Causes
There are developmental issues with some children's hip joints which are called hip dysplasia when the cup and the head of the femur are not lined up appropriately. They're either dislocated, meaning they're off base or not touching, or they're subluxable, which means there's too much movement in the joint so when the child starts walking, the femur will not sit on top of the acetabulum and allow this contact to occur.
Hip Dysplasia Birth Injury Diagnosis
Hip dysplasia is diagnosed fairly easily. During the first three or four months of life, several tests are conducted. These are known as the Ortolani and Barlow's maneuver which are basically done by a pediatrician in his office with slight movement of the hip where they listen for what's occurring in the hip. If they can hear some noise, then they know there's an issue.
After three to four months of life, the key test to diagnose this is known as abduction testing. It's a very simple test. You place the child on his or her back and then you spread their legs out. If their legs are unable to spread out all the way to the ground or to the table, then you know they have some problem in the function of the hips.
Unlike adults, hips in young children are very loose and you're able to actually expand or abduct the hips by just laying someone on their back and pushing the legs open similar to a frog. If there's any limitation in that, an x-ray can be done to determine whether or not the child has hip dysplasia. That x-ray will reveal if there is a problem 100% of the time.
If your child has been diagnosed with a hip dysplasia birth injury, contact an experienced hip dysplasia birth injury attorney to discuss your situation, determine whether you're entitled to compensation for your injuries and evaluate whether filing a hip dysplasia birth injury lawsuit is the right choice for you.