The 10 Most Terrifying Things About Cerebral Palsy Attorneys
How to Make a Successful Cerebral Palsy Claim
A diagnosis of cerebral palsy has a profound effect on the child and their family. Compensation can allow them to live a fuller life, with access to medical equipment, care and support.
Medical negligence is usually the reason for cerebral palsy. This can be due to an absence of care during pregnancy, or problems during delivery or other incidents.
Causes
Early diagnosis and treatment for CP can improve a child’s capabilities. Doctors diagnose CP by looking at the muscle tone of a child and coordination. They might refer the child to specialists such as neurologists, pediatric orthopedists, and physiatrists to assist in managing symptoms and increase the quality of life for children.
Every person is affected by cerebral palsy in different ways. It can be mild with no impact on a child's function, or severe and result in impairments throughout the body. The symptoms can include a neck that is floppy (floppy neck) as well as a muscles that are stiff or uncontrolled, difficulty walking or having problems with speech and other functions. If cerebral palsy is only affecting the child's body, then it is called hemiplegia. If it affects both sides of the body, it is referred to as diplegia. A severe CP could cause a locked-in (spastic) condition that is characterized by muscle spasticity. This can restrict the ability of a person to move and can make it difficult to speak and eating.
Birth complications are an often-repeated cause of CP. Nurses, midwives, and doctors should be extra cautious when delivering babies because damage to the brain could cause serious harm. A doctor could be held accountable for malpractice if a medical mistake results in cerebral palsy or brain damage caused by oxygen deficiency. This includes a lack of planning or performing a C-section urgently or failure to monitor and escalate a complex labor.
Signs and symptoms
If your child suffers from cerebral palsy, they'll most likely exhibit a variety of physical symptoms. This could include tight or stiff joints or muscles, a limp, involuntary movement and issues with balance and posture. Other issues could include speech delays, intellectual disabilities and vision and hearing issues.
Cerebral Palsy symptoms are caused by damage to the developing brain, most often in early childhood or infants. A delay in reaching milestones, such as rolling over, sitting up, crawling or walking is a common sign of CP. Children with CP might also have trouble swallowing and may require a feeding device.
A variety of factors can trigger the development of a brain injury that leads to CP and other conditions, such as rubella, cytomegalovirus or toxoplasmosis in the womb as well as high blood pressure during pregnancy and genetic predisposition. Asphyxia (a severe deficiency of oxygen) during labor or birth is a leading cause of CP.
Based on the kind of cerebral palsy law firm palsy, the symptoms can vary from mild to severe. Spastic cerebral palsy (characterized by stiff muscles) is the most prevalent type. Dyskinetic cerebral palsy (also known as athetoid choreoathetoid and choreoathetoid) is characterized by uncontrolled and slow writhing of the legs, arms and the body. Other forms of CP include ataxic cerebral Palsy (which is characterized by a shakey movement) or paraplegic CP in which the legs and arms are affected.
Treatment
Though the symptoms of cerebral palsy lawsuits palsy can differ, most sufferers of the condition experience stiffness and loss in muscle control. They might also have problems with balance and coordination. The type of movement problems they experience will depend on the area of their brain that was injured as well as the degree of the injury.
Many people with CP require specific physical therapy in order to improve their mobility, Palsy muscle tone and stretch their muscles and joints. It can also ease pain and prevent contracture. Braces, exercises, or other treatments could be considered.
CP is caused by musculoskeletal issues like patella alta and hip dysplasia. Scoliosis and cervical stenosis can also be seen. These can cause major problems in mobility, reducing life expectancy.
Other treatments include speech and language therapies for children who cannot communicate effectively. This can assist them to discover new ways to communicate and could include sign language, communication boards, or voice synthesizers.
These medications can be used to decrease abnormal movements, reduce pain, and prevent seizures. These medications can be administered orally, or directly injected into the muscles affected, or into the fluid that surrounds your spinal cord.
Compensation
A successful cerebral palsy claim could result in compensation for your child to pay for specialist care, equipment and treatment. The amount of compensation will be based on the mental and physical effects of your child's illness and any expenses or losses you may have incurred. This could include losing earnings because you have had stop work to take care of your child, home adaptions and transportation costs to transport your child to and from appointments.
Depending on the degree of the injury to your child the lawyer might recommend hiring an expert in disability care to draft a 'life care plan' that carefully details their needs starting from the date of their diagnosis until they reach adulthood. This will help you calculate the most accurate compensation amount. It is typically in the form of a lump-sum and recurring annual payments which may be indexed to keep up with the rate of inflation.
It is important to know that the amount of compensation you receive from a legal case isn't a quick buck. It's an acknowledgement of injustice that occurred because medical professionals failed to perform their duty of care during labour, pregnancy and the delivery.