Medical negligence or improper medical care can lead to cerebral palsy (CP). CP is a birth injury that affects the brain and central nervous system of an infant. Cerebral palsy symptoms can include shaking or spastic limbs and lack of overall movement control. Cerebral palsy can also impair brain functioning, vision and hearing. Cerebral palsy is caused by a lack of oxygen to the infant’s brain during your pregnancy, labor or delivery. According to United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), there are about 8,000 cerebral palsy cases each year in the United States.
Types of Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy types can have different levels of severity and different kinds of symptoms. Signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy depend on the severity and location of the brain injury. Typically, symptoms will include the inability to control movement in limbs, such as spastic, rigid, slow, or shaky movements.
Other common signs include difficulty with eating, speaking, swallowing and a problem with drooling. Symptoms may be limited to one side of the body or to a single limb. One of the early signs of cerebral palsy is missing common developmental milestones. Some developmental milestones include when babies can support their own head and neck or sit up an their own. Typically, with cerebral palsy treatment and therapies, symptoms don’t worsen with age because the initial brain injury that caused your child’s cerebral palsy doesn’t change.
If you see signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy in your child, even if your child has not yet been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, call our nurse case managers today for a free consultation.
Cerebral Palsy Life Expectancy
Typically, a child’s life expectancy with cerebral palsy is normal and equivalent to that of someone without it. However, the cost in both time and expense to care for a child with cerebral palsy can be overwhelming for a family. In 2003, the average lifetime care costs for a child with cerebral palsy totaled $921,000.*
Because the need varies so greatly, the individual costs of providing assistance to a child with cerebral palsy also vary greatly. Call one of our nurse case managers at Sokolove Law today to discuss your child’s case and the specific financial challenges you’re facing.
*Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Economic costs associated with mental retardation, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, and vision impairment — United States, 2003. MMWR 2004; 53:57-9.