CAUSES OF CEREBRAL PALSY

Several of the causes of cerebral palsy that have been identified through research are preventable or treatable: head injury, jaundice, Rh incompatibility, and rubella (German measles). Doctors diagnose cerebral palsy by testing motor skills and reflexes, looking into medical history, and employing a variety of specialized tests. Although its symptoms may change over time, cerebral palsy by definition is not progressive, so if a patient shows increased impairment, the problem may be something other than cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy, or CP, is a group of permanent disorders associated with developmental brain injuries that occur during fetal development, birth, or shortly after birth. It is characterized by a disruption of motor skills, with symptoms such as spasticity, paralysis or seizures. Cerebral palsy has been described as something of an “umbrella term”, in that it refers to a group of different conditions. It has been suggested that no two people with Cerebral Palsy will have an identical case even if they have the same diagnosis.

Causes of Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy is either congenital (present at birth) or acquired after birth.

Congenital cerebral palsy results from brain damage during pregnancy or around the time of birth and can be caused by a variety of conditions such as:

* Infection during pregnancy – There are a number of infections that can affect both mother and child, such as rubella, cytomegalovirus, and toxoplasmosis. These infections can cause damage to the nervous system of the developing fetus.

* Jaundice – Severe, untreated jaundice can result in brain damage.

* Rh incompatibility – A blood condition that causes the mother’s immune cells to attack the fetus, resulting in jaundice.

* Oxygen shortage – If the oxygen supply to the brain is severely low at the time of birth, the infant may suffer a type of brain damage called hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

* Stroke – Women who suffer from coagulation disorders may be at an increased risk for stroke in the fetus.

* Toxicity – Drug or alcohol use during pregnancy can result in brain damage.

* Bleeding – Prolonged bleeding in the infant’s brain shortly after birth can cause brain damage.

* Kidney and urinary tract infections – These infections in the mother can lead to brain damage within the fetus.

Acquired cerebral palsy results from brain damage in the first few months to years of life and can be caused by conditions such as:

* Brain infections, such as encephalitis and meningitis.

* Head injury from falls, automobile accidents and child abuse.

Birth Injury and malpractice in New York

According to the statistics show that in New York about 27 of every 1,000 births involve some type of birth-related injury, with cerebral palsy as one of the most common.

During labor and delivery complications can occur that lead to various health problems for newborns. Collectively, these problems are referred to as birth trauma or birth injury. Birth injuries are generally caused by shipping operations, whether vaginal or abdominal, and influenced by circumstances such as:

Oxygen deficiency, which can occur when the umbilical cord or pressure on the processor rotates the birth when the unborn fetus had meconium choke itself (the first stool consisting of dirt newborns, which can be released either just before or after birth);

Although most women give birth in a hospital surrounded by medical professionals, birth injury can occur at almost any time during labor and delivery. These injuries are most often due to medical negligence or error. Babies with birth injury may recover fully and quickly, or may suffer lifelong physical and / or mental limitations.

Mistakes made by one participant in the team a lot of delivery. These errors can occur before delivery, during delivery or shortly after childbirth. They include incidents of excessive use of force or improper rotational force in the delivery process, delaying performing a cesarean section (C-section) delivery for fetal distress, failure to seek the assistance of midwives obstetrician, and improper intubation (insertion tube) of newborn needed oxygen resulting in hypoxia (amount sufficient oxygen reaching body tissues).

Incorrect or incomplete pre-natal testing / monitoring which may lead the medical team was not ready for delivery difficult. This includes conditions such as high infant birth weight (more than 9 pounds), anomalies associated with maternal pelvis size and shape, and the fetus is not properly positioned, all of which can be detected through the use of sonograms.

Mechanical trauma when an unusual position adopted by the baby during delivery or when the baby is too large to easily pass through the birth canal, as often happens, with maternal diabetes;

While thankfully none of the scenarios would mean that there will be a birth injury, they complicate the process of labor and delivery, providing greater statistical probability of occurrence. In most cases of babies with birth injuries will make a full recovery. When circumstances are such that full recovery does not happen that way, birth injury can destroy, often causing debilitating injuries to the newborn that can last a lifetime.

The most common birth injuries are cerebral palsy, oxygen deprivation, mental retardation, Erb's Palsy, Klumpke's Palsy and brachial Plexus injury. The ability to file medical malpractice claims if the injury is still giving birth is a possibility for both newborns and their families to recover monetary damages.