Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy is the term given to describe disorders apparent at birth or in childhood due to neonatal brain damage. Cerebral palsy affects 1 in every 400 children born in the UK.

What is Cerebral Palsy?

The term cerebral palsy refers to any one of a number of neurological disorders that appear in infancy or early childhood and permanently affect body movement and muscle coordination but do not worsen over time. Even though cerebral palsy affects muscle movement, it is not caused by problems in the muscles or nerves. It is caused by abnormalities in parts of the brain that control muscle movements. The majority of children with cerebral palsy are born with it, although it may not be detected until months or years later. A small number of children have cerebral palsy as the result of brain damage in the first few months or years of life, brain infections such as bacterial meningitis or viral encephalitis, or head injury from a motor vehicle accident, a fall, or child abuse.

Types of Cerebral Palsy:

There are three main types of Cerebral Palsy:

• Spastic Cerebral Palsy
  This is the most common form of Cerebral Palsy, affecting approximately 70% of patients. This type of Cerebral palsy is characterised by stiff and permanently contracted muscles , usually the lower limbs. This can cause a person difficulty when walking. Spastic Cerebral Palsy consists of these categories:
  • Diplegia – where both arms and legs are affected
  • Hemiplegia – where either the right arm and leg are affected
  • Quadriplegia – where both arms and both legs are affected
  • Monoplegia – where just one arm or one leg is affected
  • Triplegia – where three arms or legs are affected
• Ataxic Cerebral Palsy
  Ataxic cerebral palsy is much less common that spastic, affecting approximately 5 to 10 percent of cerebral palsy patients. The main effect of this type is on the child's sense of depth perception and balance. This is often accompanied by poor coordination, and children affected by ataxic cerebral palsy can display an abnormal gait when walking, as well as difficulty with precise movement. Another characteristic of ataxic cerebral palsy is the intention tremor. These tremors are initiated by a voluntary movement, such as reaching for a light switch, and become more severe as the individual gets closer to the objective.
• Athetoid Cerebral Palsy
  Athetoid cerebral palsy affects about 10 to 20 percent of patients. The primary characteristic is slow, uncontrolled movement. In most cases, this affects the arms, legs, hands and feet, and in rare cases, the musculature of the face and tongue, which can cause drooling and grimacing. These effects often become more severe in stressful and/or emotional times, and can also disappear entirely during sleep. Many children also have problems coordinating the muscles that are used in speech, resulting in a condition known as dysarthria.
      A small number of children have cerebral palsy as the result of brain damage in the first few months or years of life, brain infections such as bacterial meningitis or viral encephalitis, or head injury from a motor vehicle accident, a fall, or child abuse.

Causes of Cerebral Palsy

Most people think of cerebral palsy as a condition caused by problems during birth. However, although its now generally accepted that complications during labour and birth are important factors in a minority of cases, they are not the only cause. It is thought they are responsible for about one in ten cases.

It is easier to think of Cerebral Palsy as a condition where a part of the brain has not developed properly. This might be because of a variety of events occurring before, during or after the delivery. So, it may be the result of problems with blood supply to the baby's brain during delivery, but it may also happen while the baby is still growing in the womb.

Better maternity care has meant fewer babies are born with Cerebral Palsy due to birth trauma, but this has been offset by the improved survival of premature and low birth weight babies, who may be up to 50 times more at risk of Cerebral Palsy.

Genetic factors may also predispose a child to Cerebral Palsy, while infections when a baby is young (especially encephalitis or meningitis) can also lead to this condition. In a number of cases it is difficult to pin down the exact cause with any certainty.

Smoking, drugs, alcohol, placental problems, toxaemia and infection during pregnancy, childbirth complications, prematurity and infection increase the risk of a child developing Cerebral Palsy and so should be avoided as much as possible.

Cerebral Palsy and Medical Negligence

Birth injury cases are extremely complex. In terms of the legal complications involved but more so because of the very stressful and emotional experience the parents and family have been through.

Many children have a congenital malformation of the brain, which means that the baby has been born with a 'birth defect' rather than having been injured as a result of medical negligence.

Sometimes a child will suffer from Cerebral Palsy as a result of an error on the part of medical staff. If it can be proven that the error is a result of negligence and the injuries to the baby could have been avoided there may be a claim for clinical negligence. Although there are potentially many different ways following are just some of the mistakes made during delivery that have caused children to be born with a birth injury:

• leaving the child in the birth canal too long causing a lack of oxygen to the brain;
• failure to recognize and treat seizures following delivery;
• failure to detect a prolapsed umbilical cord reducing oxygen supply;
• excessive use of vacuum extraction;
• improper use of delivery forceps;
• failure to perform a caesarean section in the presence of foetal distress;
• not responding to changes in the foetal heart rate;
• failure to plan a caesarean section for a potentially large birth weight;
• failure to respond to the mother's high blood pressure or toxaemia;
• failure to diagnose and treat jaundice or meningitis.

Medical mistakes are responsible for many birth injury cases and it would be impossible for a parent, alone, to determine if medical negligence caused their child's injury. It is only through the concerted efforts of a legal and medical team that the cause can be ascertained.

If you or a member of your family received poor or badly handled care during child birth or your baby was not properly cared for after birth, you may have a claim for compensation and should seek no obligation free initial legal advice from an expert Cerebral Palsy solicitor.

Compensation for Cerebral Palsy

Many babies who have been effected by birth injuries will require help and assistance for many years - sometimes even for the rest of their life. Many families don't have the resources to provide the very best care they would want for their baby. If you think your child's condition resulted from medical negligence your specialist Cerebral Palsy solicitor will help you to ensure you receive the compensation your baby deserves so they can be looked after both now and in the future. Your baby will in most cases qualify for legal aid so the legal costs will be paid for by the legal services commission. See our section on funding for more information.

Contact Head Injury UK for a no obliagtion, free, discussion with an expert Cerebral Palsy solicitor.

Causes of Cerebral Palsy

Most people think of cerebral palsy as a condition caused by problems during birth. However, although its now generally accepted that complications during labour and birth are important factors in a minority of cases, they are not the only cause. It is thought they are responsible for about one in ten cases.

It is easier to think of Cerebral Palsy as a condition where a part of the brain has not developed properly. This might be because of a variety of events occurring before, during or after the delivery. So, it may be the result of problems with blood supply to the baby's brain during delivery, but it may also happen while the baby is still growing in the womb.

Better maternity care has meant fewer babies are born with Cerebral Palsy due to birth trauma, but this has been offset by the improved survival of premature and low birth weight babies, who may be up to 50 times more at risk of Cerebral Palsy.

Genetic factors may also predispose a child to Cerebral Palsy, while infections when a baby is young (especially encephalitis or meningitis) can also lead to this condition. In a number of cases it is difficult to pin down the exact cause with any certainty.

Smoking, drugs, alcohol, placental problems, toxaemia and infection during pregnancy, childbirth complications, prematurity and infection increase the risk of a child developing Cerebral Palsy and so should be avoided as much as possible.

Cerebral Palsy and Medical Negligence

Birth injury cases are extremely complex. In terms of the legal complications involved but more so because of the very stressful and emotional experience the parents and family have been through.

Many children have a congenital malformation of the brain, which means that the baby has been born with a ‘birth defect’ rather than having been injured as a result of medical negligence.

Sometimes a child will suffer from Cerebral Palsy as a result of an error on the part of medical staff. If it can be proven that the error is a result of negligence and the injuries to the baby could have been avoided there may be a claim for clinical negligence. Although there are potentially many different ways following are just some of the mistakes made during delivery that have caused children to be born with a birth injury:

• leaving the child in the birth canal too long causing a lack of oxygen to the brain;
• failure to recognize and treat seizures following delivery;
• failure to detect a prolapsed umbilical cord reducing oxygen supply;
• excessive use of vacuum extraction;
• improper use of delivery forceps;
• failure to perform a caesarean section in the presence of foetal distress;
• not responding to changes in the foetal heart rate;
• failure to plan a caesarean section for a potentially large birth weight;
• failure to respond to the mother's high blood pressure or toxaemia;
• failure to diagnose and treat jaundice or meningitis.

Medical mistakes are responsible for many birth injury cases and it would be impossible for a parent, alone, to determine if medical negligence caused their child's injury. It is only through the concerted efforts of a legal and medical team that the cause can be ascertained.

If you or a member of your family received poor or badly handled care during child birth or your baby was not properly cared for after birth, you may have a claim for compensation and should seek no obligation free initial legal advice from an expert Cerebral Palsy solicitor.

Compensation for Cerebral Palsy

Many babies who have been effected by birth injuries will require help and assistance for many years - sometimes even for the rest of their life. Many families don't have the resources to provide the very best care they would want for their baby. If you think your child's condition resulted from medical negligence your specialist Cerebral Palsy solicitor will help you to ensure you receive the compensation your baby deserves so they can be looked after both now and in the future. Your baby will in most cases qualify for legal aid so the legal costs will be paid for by the legal services commission. See our section on funding for more information.

Contact us for a no obliagtion, free, discussion with an expert Cerebral Palsy solicitor.

The Prognosis for Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy does not always cause profound disabilities. While one child with severe cerebral palsy might be unable to walk and need extensive, lifelong care, another with mild cerebral palsy might be only slightly awkward and require no special assistance. Supportive treatments, medications, and surgery can help many individuals improve their motor skills and ability to communicate with the world.

Common problems and symptoms of Cerebral Palsy

• Problems using and controlling muscles, causing difficulty with walking, writing, eating, talking, dressing
• Problems with balance and coordination
• Difficulty controlling and maintaining posture (they may need help to sit upright)
• Visual difficulties
• Hearing problems
• Learning difficulties
• Epilepsy (this affects as many as one in three children with CP)

A common misconception is that people with CP inevitably have learning difficulties. This misunderstanding may have arisen because people with CP can have problems controlling their facial movements and speech, and it can be difficult to understand them at first.

However, just like in the rest of the population, there's a range of intelligence: some people with CP have moderate or even severe learning difficulties, while others are extremely intelligent