Get Help After Medical Malpractice Leads to a CP Diagnosis
Learning that your child suffers from a serious medical condition is one of the most terrifying moments in a parent’s life. While it can be difficult to determine the cause of cerebral palsy in a young child, the movement disorder can be caused by an error in the treatment you received from your obstetrician or other medical providers.
If your child has recently been diagnosed with cerebral palsy and you suspect that medical malpractice was to blame, you should reach out to an experienced Dallas birth injury attorney to discuss your options as soon as possible. Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP is available at (214) 231-0555 for a free consultation.
What Is Cerebral Palsy?
Cerebral palsy is a disorder of movement, muscle tone, or posture that is caused by damage or malformation of the developing brain, most often before birth. While the symptoms and severity of cerebral palsy vary greatly, affected people generally suffer from impaired movement – abnormal reflexes, floppiness, rigidity of the limbs and trunk, abnormal posture, involuntary movements, unsteady walking, or a combination of these.
When a child is diagnosed with cerebral palsy, which generally occurs during the first few years of life, a parent’s most significant question may be, “What is my child’s life going to be like?”
Cerebral palsy’s effect on quality of life differs; some affected people can walk while others can’t. Intellectual disability, epilepsy, blindness, and deafness are all potential co-occurring conditions that can significantly alter a child’s quality of life as well.
Cerebral Palsy and Medical Malpractice
There are a number of ways the brain’s development can be disrupted in utero, causing cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy arising from maternal infections, fetal stroke, infant infections, or lack of oxygen to the baby’s brain during delivery may be caused by a doctor’s negligence (Mayo Clinic).
The obstetric treatment that seemed standard to you at the time may present red flags once you learn of your child’s cerebral palsy (CP) diagnosis. If your doctor caused or contributed to your child’s CP, you deserve to be compensated, as CP requires ongoing treatment and equipment.
In order to prove a practitioner’s negligence in a medical malpractice case, your legal team will need to prove the following:
- The doctor in question was the person who provided treatment to you, and did so willingly. This can be proved by medical records and testimony.
- The doctor failed to provide the standard of care, or what is considered the accepted level of care by the medical community in the given circumstances. This is usually substantiated through the use of an expert witness, who is considered an expert in cerebral palsy and can testify regarding proper procedure.
- The doctor’s error directly caused your child’s cerebral palsy. A doctor’s error alone, without causation, does not make him or her liable.
- In order to receive damages, you must prove that your child has received a cerebral palsy diagnosis. This can be done through medical records and testimony.
Work with an Experienced Dallas Cerebral Palsy Lawyer
Cerebral palsy is a lifelong condition that will significantly affect your child’s life and your own life. If the reason for your child’s illness is a doctor’s carelessness, you deserve to be compensated.
Compensation will allow you to pay for ongoing medical care for your child and manage the changes in quality of life and emotional trauma that may come with the diagnosis. There is so much to learn and do after receiving a diagnosis like this – trying to fight for your rightful damages alone should not be one of them.
If you’d like to speak with an experienced and knowledgeable cerebral palsy attorney about your medical malpractice concerns, call Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP at (214) 231-0555.
