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Cerebral Palsy Claim

Cerebral palsy is a disorder that affects the brain and causes motor deficiency. Cerebral refers to the part of the body affected, and palsy refers to paralysis, as an area of the brain is dormant or paralysed, leading to either partial or complete muscle paralysis.

Table of Contents

    What causes cerebral palsy?

    The brain damage usually happens before, during, or shortly after birth and can end up being a lifetime disability for the affected child. Sometimes cerebral palsy is a term that includes several different movement-and-brain-related disabilities, but generally, there are three kinds of cerebral palsy: spastic cerebral palsy, Athetoid cerebral palsy, and ataxic cerebral palsy. Spastic cerebral palsy includes stiffness and a problem moving limbs. Athetoid cerebral palsy involves involuntary, uncontrolled, and sometimes abnormal movements. Ataxic cerebral palsy includes problems with a sense of balance, depth-perception, or walking.

    What kind of tests can confirm cerebral palsy?

    Tests that confirm cerebral palsy include blood tests, a cranial ultrasound that can help the doctors see an image of the brain tissue, an MRI that allows physicians to see resonance and density in relation to the brain tissue, and a CT scan, which is an in-depth, 3D scan of the baby’s brain.

    Cognitive assessments and medical observations are also used to help confirm cerebral palsy. Additionally, evaluations of the child’s mobility, speech and language, hearing, vision, gait, and feeding and digestion are utilized to determine the disorder. Keep in mind, however, that a cerebral palsy diagnosis takes time, sometimes up to several years after a brain injury takes place. Furthermore, there isn’t a single test that can completely confirm or completely exclude cerebral palsy. Instead, a combination of a series of tests, observations, assessments, and evaluations are used to help diagnose the disorder.

    What are the signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy?

    Cerebral palsy is marked by spastic movements, a lack of muscle control, and sometimes the inability to use muscles, and is often determined by abnormal, slow, writhing movements that the child cannot control. Additionally, muscle tone varies between floppy and stiff, which also could result in the use of some muscles over others. Other signs that your child may have cerebral palsy include missing developmental milestones and/or intellectual disabilities.

    • Muscle Tone: As previously mentioned, a person with cerebral palsy has a lack of muscle control. This, in turn, may make what seems like simple tasks extremely difficult. For example, sitting down, walking, tying shoes, and grasping objects may prove to be exhausting and hard for those with cerebral palsy.
    • Reflexes: People with cerebral palsy may have abnormal reflex responses such as asymmetrical or symmetrical tonic reflex, palmer grasp reflex, and spinal gallant reflexes. Moro reflexes may be present in some infants but generally clear up with 5 months of age.
    • Coordination and Control: Both coordination and control are limited with those who have cerebral palsy and are usually more pronounced when stressed or overwhelmed. Common issues with coordination and control include spastic movements, walking with a wide gait, walking with toes pointed inward or outward, dragging one leg while walking, and waddling when walking.
    • Oral Motor Problems: Many people with cerebral palsy will experience difficulties with communication because of the spastic movements of facial muscles. This also can affect breathing, eating, closing the mouth, and swallowing.

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    The claim process

    1. Consult our medical negligence solicitor

    It is advisable for you to speak to an experienced team of Medical Negligence Solicitors as soon as possible if you believe that you were not provided with an adequate or appropriate level of medical care, which resulted in you sustaining an injury or illness.

    2. We obtain your medical records

    After the consultation with your medical negligence solicitor, he/she will request access to your medical records and engage an independent medical expert to assess your records. The purpose of engaging an independent expert is to establish whether there was any negligence on the part of the medical professional.

    3. The medical negligence litigation process

    Where the independent medical expert is of the professional opinion that medical negligence did occur, upon your instructions, your solicitor will commence the process of issuing legal proceedings in Court against the medical professional and/or hospital.

    Statute of Limitation

    The legal time limit to make a medical negligence claim is two years from the date of injury or date of knowledge that the injury or illness resulted from medical negligence. For children/minors, the time limit expires two years after their 18th birthday. You may contact a solicitor to discuss your case and advise you of the statute of limitations applicable to your case. Learn more

    Our Team

    Claiming a cerebral palsy birth injury can be a traumatic experience, as the process for making a claim can be emotionally distressing for the parents, and the claim effectively accuses people you placed your trust in during the delivery process of not fulfilling their duty of care.

    A birth injury compensation claim also has to consider the consequences of the birth injury – both physical and psychological – and take into account the high level of care that your child may need for the rest of their lives. Once liability has been established in a claim for a birth injury, it can still take a considerable period of time for the value of the claim to be accurately calculated while the impact on your son or daughter’s life is assessed.

    During this time, you may be able to apply for interim payments of birth injury compensation to help you through any financial hardship. You should discuss this with your solicitor to obtain your child’s best medical and educational support. All parents of children with cerebral palsy and other birth injuries need to have their cases professionally investigated where they feel the condition may result in medical negligence.

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    Clodagh Magennis

    Clodagh Magennis

    Head of Client Services

    P: 1800-844-104
    E: [email protected]

    ”At Coleman Legal, excellence in customer care is paramount. We aim to meet both prospective and existing client’s needs in a professional, engaging, and friendly manner with a clear objective to give quality legal advice and reach a positive outcome.”

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