Cerebral Palsy - written by Chen Attar, Clinical Negligence Paralegal

Cerebral Palsy:

Cerebral Palsy is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain movement, balance, posture and muscle tone. It is a result of a combination of events that can lead to an injury in an infant’s developing brain.

It is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain. It is usually caused by damage or injury to the infant’s brain before, during or after birth. In 85% - 90% of Cerebral Palsy cases are congenital and occur before or during birth. A small percentage of Cerebral Palsy is caused by abnormal development of the brain or damage that occurs more than 28 days after birth.

There are many symptoms to other disabilities, such as movement and coordination, speech, eating and development disabilities. It can cause severe difficulties to walk; however, it may be mild that it is almost unnoticeable to most people.

Causes of cerebral Palsy:

Cerebral Palsy is caused by damage to the brain during the pregnancy, during labour and after the baby is born, which affects the person’s ability to control their muscles.

Some of the main causes of problems with brain development are as follows: 

• Gene mutations.
• Maternal infections.
• Fetal stroke.
• Bleeding into the brain in the womb or after birth.
• Traumatic head injury.
• Lack of oxygen and nutrients in the womb.

Symptoms:

The symptoms of Cerebral palsy may be ambivalent. A person who suffers from mild Cerebral Palsy might walk differently but not require assistance; whereas a person who suffers from severe Cerebral Palsy might require special equipment to walk and need carer support for the rest of their life.

Below is a list of numerous important symptoms to which you may want to pay attention:

• Difficulty to preform basic motor skills, such as buttoning clothes or picking up objects.
• Delays in reaching motor skills milestones.
• Stiff muscles and exaggerated reflexes.
• Eye muscle imbalance.
• Involuntary movements.
• Delays in speech development and difficulty speaking.
• Difficulty sucking, chewing, eating or swallowing.
• Learning difficulties.
• Delayed growth.
• Hearing difficulties.
• Mental health conditions.

How can we help?

Claims relating to Cerebral Palsy arise due to negligence of monitoring the baby’s heartbeat, as abnormal heart rates may indicate that the baby is in distress or lacks oxygen. Furthermore, delay in delivery may also cause distress and lack of oxygen to the baby, which could potentially lead to brain injury.

It is upsetting to discover that your new-born might have a lifelong condition that sometimes requires lifelong care.  It is therefore important to ensure that you receive all the help to which you and your child are entitled.

If you believe that your child has Cerebral Palsy that was caused due to  negligence of a health professional or would like to discuss this further, please give us a call on 01618732001 or hello@clearlawonline.co.uk.