Cerebral Palsy (CP) is a series of disorders that include brain damage limiting one’s ability to control and move one’s own body. Cerebral refers to the brain, as in Cerebellum. Palsy is an impairment of the body’s normal movement. Damaged neurons and motor areas in the brain may it difficult for people with CP to control their movement. CP is usually diagnosed within the first few years of life.
If your child has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy, brain damage, or another type of birth injury, you should find out why it happened. Often these birth injuries are caused because the child did not receive sufficient oxygen at some point during the pregnancy. In many cases, these injuries could have been prevented.
Cerebral Palsy is a permanent injury that affects the entire body. This birth injury can occur during pregnancy or during the delivery stage. Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy may include the following:
- Difficulty speaking, writing, hearing, or seeing
- Inability to lift or control the head
- Delayed development
- Difficulty swallowing
- Failure of an infant to crawl or walk at appropriate stages of development
- Involuntary movement of arms and legs
- Limited motion
- Lack of coordination and inability to balance
Medical Malpractice by doctors can cause Cerebral Palsy during the pregnancy, during labor and the birthing process, and immediately after birth.
Examples of mistakes may include:
- Failure to properly read and respond to the changing conditions of the baby during labor
- Failure to monitor the baby’s heart rate during labor
- Failure to respond to change’s in the baby’s heart rate
- Failure to take affirmative medical action when the baby is not receiving sufficient oxygen during labor or delivery
- Failure to respond to changes in the mother’s medical condition during pregnancy, labor, and or delivery.
- Failure to timely order and perform a cesarean section
- Failure to immediately induce delivery of the baby after membranes have been ruptured
- Overuse of vacuum extraction or performing the procedure in a manner which injures the baby
Insufficient amounts of oxygen to the baby’s brain or traumatic injury to the baby’s head during labor and delivery can cause cerebral palsy. There are a number of factors that help to prove traumatic event occurred due to improper medical care:
- Inability to suck.
- Development of Seizures 1-2 days after birth.
- Baby’s skin is blue.
- The infant needs resuscitation at, or shortly after birth because he/she is not breathing.
- A baby born full-term pregnancy (36 weeks), but must remain hospitalized for a prolonged care or evaluation after birth.
- A normal pregnancy with no trauma, medical history, or infection.
- No family history of brain damage.
- The mother’s water has remained broken for longer than 24 hours.
- Visible meconium or fecal staining on the baby at birth.
Cerebral Palsy typically requires life long medical care, life care, and special devices to assist the patient. Wheel chairs, communication devices, in-home care, multi disciplinary medical attention, and vocational and educational training is often needed. Individuals with cerebal palsy may need a speech pathologist, pediatric neurologist, occupational therapist, psychiatrist, and or a physical therapist.
If your son or daughter has Cerebral Palsy which was caused because of a doctor or hospital’s mistake, you may be entitled to compensation including: both past and future pain and suffering, past and future medical costs, and other life care expenses.
We provide cerebral palsy legal consultation absolutely free. You can contact us at our New York offices given below.
