The 10 Scariest Things About Cerebral Palsy Attorneys

How to Make a Successful Cerebral Palsy Claim

A diagnosis of cerebral paralysis can have an enormous impact on the child's life and the lives of their parents. Compensation can help them live a full life with access to medical equipment, cerebral palsy care and support.

Many cases of cerebral palsy stem from medical negligence. This could be caused by an absence of medical attention during pregnancy, issues during delivery or other incidents.

Causes

Early diagnosis and treatment of CP can enhance a child's abilities. Doctors can diagnose CP by observing a child's muscle tone and coordination, as well as movement. They can refer a child to specialists like neurologists, orthopedists for children and physiatrists to aid in managing symptoms and improve the quality of life.

Every person is affected by cerebral palsy in different ways. It can be moderate and have only a slight impact on a child's abilities, or it can be severe and cause impairments across all body parts. Some of the symptoms include a floppy (floppy neck) head and stiff or uncontrolled muscles as well as difficulty walking or having difficulty with speech and other functions. If a child's condition is cerebral palsy on one side of the body, it's referred to as hemiplegia. When it happens on both sides, it's called diplegia. A severe CP can cause a locked-in (spastic) condition that is characterized by spasticity in muscles that restricts a person's movements and leads to issues with speech and eating.

Childbirth-related mistakes made by doctors are the leading cause of CP. Midwives, doctors, and nurses should be aware when delivering babies as brain damage could cause serious harm. If a medical mistake results in oxygen deprivation or other brain injury that causes cerebral palsy, the doctor could be held accountable for negligence. This is the case when scheduling or performing a C section urgently or failing to monitor and increase the intensity of labor.

Symptoms

If your child suffers from cerebral palsy, he / is likely to experience an array of physical symptoms. These symptoms could include tight or stiff muscles and a limp, involuntary movements, as well as issues with balance and posture. Other problems include intellectual disabilities, speech delays and hearing and vision problems.

The symptoms of cerebral palsy result from damage to the brain's maturation. It is most commonly seen during infancy or the early years of childhood. A delay in milestones such as sitting, rolling over, walking, or crawling could be an indication of CP. Children with CP are also more likely to experience trouble swallowing and might need a feeding tube.

A variety of factors can trigger the development of a brain injury that leads to CP that can be caused by infections such as rubella, cytomegalovirus or toxoplasmosis in the womb and high blood pressure in pregnancy and genetic predisposition. Asphyxia (a serious lack of oxygen) during labor or cerebral palsy delivery is a leading cause of CP.

Based on the type of cerebral palsy, the symptoms can vary from mild to severe. Spastic cerebral palsy (characterized by stiff muscles) is the most frequent type. Dyskinetic cerebral palsy (also called choreoathetoid, or athetoid) is characterized by slow, uncontrolled flailing movements of the arms, legs and body. Other forms of CP can include ataxic palsy, which has an unstable motion, or paraplegic cerebral palsy in which legs and arms are affected.

Treatment

While the symptoms specific to cerebral palsy can vary, a majority of sufferers have to cope with stiffness and loss of muscle control. They may also be struggling with coordination and balance. The type of movement problems they suffer from depend on the part of the brain that was injured as well as the severity.

Many people with CP require special physical therapy which helps them improve their mobility and muscle tone and stretch and strengthen their muscles and joints. It also helps relieve pain and help prevent contractures. Exercises, braces or other treatments might be incorporated.

CP is characterized by musculoskeletal disorders such as patella alta and hip dysplasia. Scoliosis and cervical stenosis also occur. These can cause significant issues in mobility, which reduces life expectancy.

Speech and language therapy can be used to assist children who are not able to communicate effectively. This can assist them to discover new ways to communicate and could involve signing language, communication boards or voice synthesizers.

These medications can be used to reduce abnormal movements, reduce pain, and control seizures. These drugs can be taken orally, or directly injected into the muscles affected, or into the fluid around your spinal cord.

Compensation

A successful cerebral palsy claim could result in compensation for your child's for medical equipment, specialist care and treatment. This will be determined by the psychological and physical effects that your child's condition has caused on them, as well as any costs or losses you have incurred. This could be a loss of earnings due to you having to quit work to take care of your children, home modifications and transport expenses.

Your lawyer could hire an expert in disability-related care dependent on the degree of the injury to your child. This specialist will draft an "life care plan" that will outline their needs from the moment of diagnosis until they reach the age of adulthood. This can help determine an exact compensation amount. It typically is in the form of lump sums as well as regular annual payments that can be indexed to keep up with the rate of inflation.

It is important to be aware that the compensation resulting from a successful legal claim isn't a windfall. It is a recognition of the injustice that occurred due to the fact that a medical professional did not perform their duty of care in pregnancy, labour, and the delivery.