A diagnosis of cerebral palsy is something that medical professionals take very seriously. Because the disorder cannot be cured and because the effects of the disorder are sometimes very severe, it’s important that the parents and doctors understand what to expect for the child affected. If you have a child who is diagnosed with cerebral palsy, you need to understand a few things about this disorder to make certain that you have some idea of what you are facing.

What is It?

Cerebral palsy in infants is usually caused by an injury that occurs in the womb or during the birthing process. This may or may not be the result of medical negligence of some kind. Cerebral palsy is not a disease. Cerebral palsy is also not a singular thing. Cerebral palsy refers to a group of disorders that result from a specific type of brain injury. The brain injury affects the parts of the brain that control the muscles and, because of that, coordination, the ability to walk and fine motor skills are usually severely compromised in the individual with cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy is also oftentimes accompanied by mental impairments of varying degrees. There are cases where people with cerebral palsy have no mental impairment whatsoever. There are plenty of cases where the level of mental impairment is very severe, however, and where people are nearly vegetative. In such cases, the patient will need a lifetime of care and will not be able to attend to even their most basic needs on their own.

Most of the time, cerebral palsy is noticed right away. Scanning technology and laboratory technology make it much easier to reach a conclusive diagnosis. There are cases, however, where parents don’t find out for a long time that their child has cerebral palsy and, therefore, where they are sometimes informed that their child has cerebral palsy quite a while after the child was actually delivered.

Contact a Dallas cerebral palsy lawyer if you believe that medical negligence caused your child’s birth injury. If it proves to be the case that your child’s birth injury was caused by medical negligence, there’s a possibility that a jury may award you financial compensation or that the insurance company for the doctor or healthcare facility may offer you a settlement that could help you and your family to pay for the costs of providing for your child’s health care.