Cerebral Palsy and its Link to Medical Malpractice

Malpractice is a term in law which refers to the negligence exhibited by a professional if he fails to follow generally accepted standards, and the breach of duty is the proximate cause of injury to a plaintiff for which he suffers from pain.

Probably one of the most common types of malpractice is medical malpractice. Medical malpractice is negligence on the part of health providers and professionals. Although in any kind of malpractice, malpractice lawyers Los Angeles are the experts when it comes to cases involving malpractices, especially in sensitive procedures such as childbirth.

Childbirth is one of the most delicate procedures done in a medical professional’s life. It may seem smooth in the surface but what makes it delicate is the life a physician is trying to bring out from a mother’s womb. This small life is so fragile, requiring extreme care and medical skills.

Because a baby is so fragile, a little pressure applied in any part of its body may cause a damage that would greatly affect him his whole life. One of these disorders and is probably the most common is cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy refers to a group of motor conditions that affect a person’s body movement. It is typically diagnosed during the child’s first 18 months, although these symptoms appear in babies as young as three months. This disorder is non-progressive and generally do not worsen as time passes, however its severity can increase over time because of tissue damage.

In relation to medical malpractices, when a healthcare professional inflicts any of the following malpractices to the baby while delivery, it may cause hypoxia or brain trauma, thus cerebral palsy:

• Forceps or vacuum extraction were improperly used

• The baby was left in the birth canal for too long

• Seizures, prolapsed umbilical cord, jaundice or meningitis were failed to be recognized and treated

• A C-section if the baby is in distress was untimely executed or the C-section schedule was neglected when it is appropriate.

• Failure to monitor the fetus or timely respond to the changes of the heart rate

• Failure to monitor and respond to the condition of the expectant mother

Malpractice lawyers Los Angeles must be contacted if a case like this happened, to fully understand your claim and to know how much compensation you may recover from the damages caused by a malpractice of a health professional: the person you have entrusted you and your baby’s life, but has failed to do so.