Find a Lawyer to fight the Mortal Mistake

Cerebral palsy is the name that generally refers to brain diseases that cause trouble with movement or seizures beginning at early childhood. These disorders can be due to genetic trends in your family’s medical history. Unfortunately, it can also be due to medical errors, called cerebral palsy malpractice. These mistakes during child delivery can cause the motion disorders known as cerebral palsy.

A doctor must be aware of several things during your child’s birth to ensure that the child’s safety and minimize the risk of birth defects. If a child is left in the birth canal too long or the umbilical cord becomes prolapsed, the child may not have enough oxygen getting to the brain; lack of oxygen is a primary cause of neurological disorders in young children. If the child cannot get enough oxygen, they may lapse into fetal distress, which can also cause severe brain damage if the child is not delivered by caesarean section immediately.

Changes in the baby or the pregnant mother can also attribute to cerebral palsy, as it is the doctor’s job to determine if a c-section is necessary. C-section must deliver a baby whose birth weight is far above average because normal spontaneous birth is not possible. Mothers with sudden medical conditions may also have to have a surgical delivery to minimize birthing risks.

Techniques used to deliver a child must be very carefully completed to ensure that the child’s head is not injured during delivery. Excessive use of forceps (used to hold the baby’s head and guide it from the birth canal) or vacuum extraction (used to suction the child out) can lead to irreversible brain damage upon birth.

Post-birth medical care is the last important facet of preventing cerebral palsy. Doctors should note and treat any seizures the baby has following delivery as these may be initial signs of cerebral palsy and must also examine the child for jaundice (German measles) and meningitis, early infections that could hurt the child at a young age.

There are certain observations you as a parent can make to determine if medical malpractice contributed to your child’s cerebral palsy. If forceps, vacuum extraction or other emergency procedures were used to delivery your child, they may have injured your child’s head at birth. Any special medical care such as CPR immediately following birth, any special x-rays or scans as well as transfers to special sections of the hospital (like the NICU-neo-natal intensive care unit) or referrals to a specialist after birth may indicate that doctors knew something was wrong with your child right after birth.

If you feel that your child’s cerebral palsy was caused by a doctor’s error during childbirth, talk to your doctor and lawyer about possible options. Ask your doctor about what certain procedures were done during birth and for any details regarding those procedures. Then speak to your lawyer about possibly failing a claim to help your support a child suffering from a costly mistake.