Birth Injuries – Cerebral Palsy

There are almost one million children and adults in the United States who exhibit one or more of the symptoms of cerebral palsy. Annually, roughly 8,000 babies are diagnosed with cerebral palsy in the United States. Cerebral palsy is a group of chronic conditions affecting body movement, brain function and muscle coordination - ‘cerebral’ meaning brain and ‘palsy’ meaning muscle weakness. Cerebral palsy in itself is not a progressive disease, which means that the condition does not worsen over time, however, secondary conditions to cerebral palsy, such as muscle spasticity, can develop over time and can, in some cases, get worse.

The two primary causes of cerebral palsy are oxygen deprivation and/or trauma to the head during labor or delivery. During delivery, if the baby does not get enough oxygen, brain injuries which can disrupt the brain’s ability to control movement and motor skills of the infant can occur.

There are many factors that could lead to lack of oxygen to the brain or head trauma during labor and/or delivery and some injuries may have been sustained as a result of medical malpractice, such as: failure or delay in performing a caesarian; not using a fetal monitor during the birth or reading it incorrectly; the administration of too much Pictocin during labor or failing to recognize fetal distress.

However, possible conditions leading to cerebral palsy are not limited to the above list. Injuries can be sustained due to delivery complications or doctor error and need to be investigated, if medical malpractice is suspected.