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Cerebral
Palsy is a permanent brain injury that can cause
problems controlling muscles, walking, using
one’s arms and legs, or decreased mental
functioning.
When
a child is diagnosed with cerebral palsy parents
often ask “Why did this happen to my child?”.
Although
there are many factors that can cause cerebral
palsy, one of the most prominent factors is
medical negligence during the childbirth process.
Recognizing
Risk
During
the labor and delivery process, many complications
can occur, so it is imperative that the physician
or midwife attending to the mother watch for
signs of fetal distress
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and
respond quickly and appropriately. Many brain
injuries are the result of avoidable errors
during the labor and delivery process.
There
are many causes of fetal distress and brain
injury. Some of the more common causes are when
the baby’s head is too big to fit through
the mother’s pelvis (sometimes called cephalo-pelvic
disproportion), or if the umbilical cord becomes
wrapped around the baby’s neck (prolapse).
If
a doctor presses forward with a vaginal delivery
in the face of cephalo-pelvic disproportion,
this can cause a squeezing or crushing injury
to the child’s brain. Doctors can and should
be aware when the baby is too big to fit through
the mother’s pelvis, especially when there
is a big baby, a slow progress of labor, or
fetal distress.
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