Cerebral palsy is not curable. It is a condition that affects approximately two to four infants out of every 1,000 babies and results from some sort of brain damage during pregnancy, labor and delivery, or infancy.
Cerebral palsy is a life-changing condition. Sometimes it cannot be avoided because of a maternal illness during pregnancy, a disease suffered during infancy, or an outside trauma such as a car accident. However, when cerebral palsy is caused by a problem during labor and delivery, then it is often a condition that could have been avoided.
Cerebral palsy can result from a birth injury when the baby’s brain is denied oxygen for too long. In some cases, the lack of oxygen is due to medical malpractice. For example, if a doctor failed to order a C-Section or take other interventions that a reasonable OB/GYN would have taken and the baby suffered cerebral palsy as a result, then the condition may have been caused by medical malpractice.
While cerebral palsy is not curable, various therapies and treatments can help children manage some of their symptoms. These therapies can be life changing and provide a marked increase in a child’s quality of life. However, they are also expensive, as is the necessary medical care for a person with cerebral palsy.
In Georgia, cerebral palsy victims may be able to recover damages for their therapies, medical expenses, pain and suffering and future lost income if their cerebral palsy was caused by medical malpractice. If your child has suffered such as injury, please contact an experienced birth injury lawyer for more information about your rights.
The Alpharetta birth injury attorneys of the Dover Law Firm invite you to read our free report Pregnancy & Childbirth: Common Practice and Common Errors and to contact us directly at 1.770.518.1133 or via our online contact form for more information.