Understanding cerebral palsy
Cerebral Palsy describes a group of conditions that affect someone’s ability to move properly and maintain balance and posture. The term cerebral means linked to the brain and the term palsy describes disorders linked to muscle movement. It can develop naturally because of abnormal brain activity before birth or unnaturally as the result of a brain injury caused during or after birth. In some cases cerebral palsy is caused by a medical mistake or negligence that takes place closely before, during or after birth. Some of the common mistakes that can cause cerebral palsy include: This could include:
- failure to inform parents about risks such as those involved in choosing to give birth away from a hospital.
- failure to monitor the baby’s heartbeat / react to signs of baby’s distress
- failure to monitor foetus and where needed arrange for earlier delivery / delivery via c – section
- failure to respond appropriately to the umbilical cord being caught around the baby’s neck
- failure to treat an infection caught by a mother during pregnancy
- failure to monitor and manage conditions or infections that develop after birth including hypoglycemia or contracting meningitis, group b strep or jaundice.
The condition affects children in different ways. In mild cases a child’s life may barely be impacted by their cerebral palsy. In more severe cases they may face significant delays in reaching development milestones, have learning difficulties, behavioural issues and physical disabilities affecting their long term independence and development.
