Vitamin K deficiency bleeding claims
Our neonatal brain injury solicitors recover life-changing compensation settlements for babies who have suffered VKDB brain injury and disability as a result of negligent maternity care.
Supporting families after VKDB brain injury with specialist legal advice.
Vitamin K deficiency bleeding or VKDB is a dangerous but preventable condition which can cause permanent injury to a baby’s brain and lifelong, severe disability.
In the UK, it is standard maternity practice for babies to be given vitamin K immediately after birth, as this is known to prevent VKDB. This means that VKDB brain injury and its devastating consequences are now rare. It also means that unless consent for vitamin K treatment was withheld by the baby’s fully informed parents, failure to give vitamin K to a newborn baby is negligent care.
For more than 30 years, Boyes Turner’s medical negligence solicitors have guided families of severely injured children through the claims process to secure the compensation and specialist support that they need to manage their child’s disability and rebuild their lives. We support parents through the difficult conversations, investigations, and decisions that follow a baby’s brain injury or cerebral palsy diagnosis and help you protect your child’s entitlement to compensation.
- Nationally recognised birth injury specialists with decades of experience
- Access to leading medical experts and rehabilitation professionals
- Proven track record of securing life-changing compensation for families
- Dedicated support from initial enquiry through to settlement
- No upfront costs and claim through a no win no fee agreement
Can I make a claim for VKDB brain injury?
If you think that your child suffered a brain injury as a result of medical negligence around the time of birth, or if you have been contacted by MNSI or NHS Resolution, we recommend that you contact our medical negligence team as soon as possible for free, confidential advice.
You can contact us by telephone or by email for free, confidential advice from a medical negligence solicitor. We will ask you to tell us briefly about your child’s neonatal care and their injury, and advise you about whether we can help you begin your claim and any time limits that apply. Your solicitor will discuss with you how your claim will be funded and advise how that works and what it will mean for you. We offer a range of funding options, but most of our clients’ claims are handled on a ‘no win no fee’ basis.
Once we have gathered the necessary evidence for your claim to proceed, we will notify the healthcare provider (usually represented by NHS Resolution) of your claim. We aim to make NHS Resolution accept full responsibility for your child’s injury as quickly as possible, so that we can obtain interim payments to help your family move to more suitable accommodation or adapt your home, and pay for the care, therapies and educational support that your child needs.
If the healthcare provider or their legal representatives at NHS Resolution deny liability, we will advise you about the best way to proceed with your claim. This may involve issuing court proceedings or inviting NHS Resolution to enter into settlement negotiations or mediation.
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Vitamin K deficiency bleeding claims FAQs
What is VKDB?
VKDB or vitamin K deficiency bleeding is a bleeding disorder which can cause severe injury to newborn babies. The condition is sometimes called by its former name, haemorrhagic disease of the newborn or HDN. It is more commonly known as VKDB because it is caused by a lack of vitamin K.
We need vitamin K in our bodies so that our blood clots normally. This allows wounds to heal and prevents excessive bleeding. Our bodies make some vitamin K from bacteria in our intestines, and the rest comes from our diet.
Babies are born without any vitamin K. In the first few weeks of life, their bodies cannot make vitamin K because their intestines do not yet contain the necessary bacteria to produce it. If they bleed, their blood does not have enough vitamin K to form a clot. This puts them at risk of serious injury, particularly severe injury to the brain from intracranial bleeding.
What kind of bleeding does VKDB cause to babies?
A baby with vitamin K deficiency bleeding may bleed uncontrollably because their blood cannot clot properly. Normal blood clotting is necessary to enable wounds to heal.
Bleeding from VKDB (haemorrhagic disease of the newborn) can occur in parts of the body where there has been treatment or trauma during birth, such as:
- from fetal scalp monitoring wounds;
- inside the baby’s head after a traumatic delivery;
- or within the chest or abdomen.
The baby may bleed from non-vital organs, such as:
- gastrointestinal (within the digestive system);
- from the skin and mucous membranes, (such as the nose or gums);
- after circumcision;
- from the umbilical stump.
The most severe injury and disability from VKDB comes from intracranial haemorrhage, where the baby suffers permanent injury from bleeding into their brain.
Can vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) be prevented?
Yes, VKDB is easily preventable by a standard treatment which is given to the newborn baby by the midwife immediately after their birth. This usually involves a single injection of vitamin K.
To prevent babies from suffering this life-threatening condition, it is standard practise in most developed countries to give supplemental vitamin K to all newborn babies. In countries such as the UK, where vitamin K is given as standard treatment to babies immediately after birth, VKDB is very rare. Where cases of VKDB occur, they may have been caused by negligent failure to give vitamin K, or where the parents of a breast-fed baby have refused to consent to their baby receiving vitamin K treatment.
Who is at risk from VKDB?
All newborn babies are at risk of serious injury or death from vitamin K deficiency bleeding (VKDB) in the first few months of life. This is because their bodies cannot make vitamin K as they do not yet have the necessary bacteria in their intestines.
The risk of VKDB is even greater where the baby:
- was born prematurely (before 37 weeks of pregnancy);
- was delivered by caesarean section, forceps or Ventouse suction (kiwi);
- had breathing problems at birth;
- is breastfed (and doesn’t receive the vitamin K that is often added to formula milk);
- is circumcised;
- has liver disease;
- has a condition, such as coeliac disease, which affects how they absorb nutrients;
- was exposed to certain medication taken by the mother during pregnancy.
What medical negligence mistakes lead to VKDB injury compensation claims?
Medical negligence compensation claims for VKDB injuries often arise after vitamin K is not correctly administered to a newborn baby, where vitamin K treatment is delayed, or where it is withheld without the parents’ informed consent.
It is recommended that all newborn babies receive vitamin K within 24 hours of birth. Parents who are considering refusing consent for their baby to receive vitamin K should be fully informed of the benefits of vitamin K and the risk of VKDB and the harm it could do to their baby.
What injuries can lead to VKDB injury compensation claims?
Medical negligence compensation claims for VKDB injury caused by negligent failure to administer vitamin K to newborn babies commonly involve permanent, severe disability from brain injury, cerebral palsy or other neurodevelopmental disability.
What compensation can be claimed for a child with VKDB brain injury?
Our specialist neonatal brain injury solicitors can help families recover substantial compensation after their child has suffered serious brain injury from VKDB following negligent maternity and neonatal care.
Once liability is established, we secure interim payments; to help meet our clients’ urgent needs for care, therapies, suitable or adapted accommodation and specialist equipment and relieve financial hardship.
Settlements are carefully structured to ensure that money will be available to meet the child’s lifelong needs arising from their disability.
Depending on the individual client’s needs, compensation may be claimed for:
- pain, suffering and disability;
- help with care and case management;
- increased costs of suitable accommodation or home adaptations;
- therapies, (e.g. physiotherapy, occupational therapy (OT), speech and language therapy);
- private medical treatment;
- specialist equipment, vehicles and assistive technology (IT);
- financial losses, including loss of earnings;
- support with special educational needs (SEN);
- Court of Protection deputyship.
Read more about compensation for cerebral palsy
Making a VKDB brain injury claim
We understand how daunting it can feel to take the first step. Our specialist VKDB brain injury solicitors are here to guide you through every stage.
Getting in touch
Call us or complete our online form for free, confidential advice from a specialist medical negligence solicitor experienced in vitamin K deficiency bleeding claims. We will listen carefully to your concerns, explain your legal options in clear, straightforward terms, and advise whether we can help investigate whether your child’s VKDB brain injury could have been prevented.
Your child's VKDB claim
Our vitamin K deficiency bleeding claims specialists will obtain your child’s medical records, instruct independent medical experts, and investigate whether appropriate vitamin K treatment was provided after birth. Where appropriate, we can seek an interim payment to help meet your child’s immediate care and support needs while the claim progresses.
Securing compensation
Our solicitors provide compassionate support throughout your VKDB claim, working to secure the maximum compensation for your child as quickly as possible to fund their lifelong care, therapies, specialist equipment, adapted accommodation and other essential support.
Contact us
If you would like advice regarding a serious injury or illness affecting you or a loved one, please complete the form and one of our experts will be in touch as soon as possible.
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Our clients receive the highest standards of advice and representation and are always treated with compassion, outstanding care and understanding of the physical, emotional, psychological and financial impact that life-changing injury can have upon their lives.
- We are nationally acclaimed for our claimant medical negligence expertise and the outstanding results we achieve for our clients.
- We are ranked as leading clinical negligence experts in the Chambers Directory and Legal 500 guides to the legal profession and are accredited for our specialist expertise by the Law Society, AvMA, and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL).
- Our integrated multidisciplinary team offers our clients a full range of specialist help with compensation, rehabilitation, SEN, deputyship, personal injury trusts and community care.
- We secure maximum compensation in claims for adults and children who have suffered catastrophic injury and severe disability, and provide practical support for their families.
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