Cerebral Palsy

Published on: January 2, 2012

Victim of Birth Injury Receives €1.35 M Settlement

by Stephen Bilkis

The victim of birth injury that occurred at Mullingar General Hospital received an interim of €1.35 million settlement as a result of negligence and a severe breach of duty. The child’s guardians hired a lawyer.

In this four-year old’s case, the Health Service Executive and obstetrician admitted liability after he was accused of negligence in the circumstances surrounding Luke’s birth. A person in the know reports that the mother stated the child was healthy when she was admitted to the hospital on February 28, 2006.

Based on the reports, the consultant obstetrician at Mullingar allegedly failed to note a decrease in the child’s heart rate on a cardiotocographic trace. It was also reported that the same doctor failed to consider another abnormal CTG trace and then failed to carry out a Cesarean section. Instead, he ordered that a labor inducing drug, known as Syntocin, be given to the mother of the victim.

Published on: December 30, 2011

True Costs of a Traumatic Birth

by Stephen Bilkis

Studies see a wide range of cases that involve the most precious members of society who are harmed by the negligence of strangers – strangers who should know better and should be providing nothing but the absolute best of care.

A British mom is launching a legal fight against a hospital trust over worries that a traumatic birth left her son brain damaged. The 38-year-old mother believes that delays in her medical care during delivery at Warrington Hospital led to her son being born with cerebral palsy.

Now seven years old, he cannot walk, wash or dress himself, and has limited powers of speech. The child has to be fed by a tube and requires 24 hour care and supervision.

Published on: December 10, 2011

Hospital Error Leaves Boy and Family with Lifelong Consequences

by Stephen Bilkis

One young boy dreams of kicking a football one day. Had it not been for a hospital blunder, however, at the then North Staffordshire Hospital during his birth in April 1998, his ambitions would have probably been set much higher.

On the day his mother was brought to the hospital, she expected nothing but a straightforward labor and delivery. She had suffered no complications when she gave birth to the boy’s sister. Everyone expected the second birth to be just as smooth, claims a nurse.

However, the hairdresser mother experienced high blood pressure. This is the death knoll on a pregnancy, though; it is a fairly common complication. Many women have high blood pressure and it doesn’t lead to complications. After all, think about what the body is going through during a pregnancy. A heart is pumping blood for two individuals and the lungs are breathing for two and the stomach is eating for two.

Published on: December 7, 2011

Statute of Limitation Unclear: Teen can Sue over Birth Injury

by Stephen Bilkis

According to authorities, statues of limitations for malpractice cases in Wisconsin don’t adequately address injuries incurred by developmentally disabled children. The state Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that a teenager with a birth injury, then, could still be allowed to file a lawsuit against his health care providers.

The parents of a fourteen-year-old boy alleged that his doctor and the St. Clare Hospital were responsible for his cerebral palsy because they allowed his brain to be deprived of oxygen for too long during before and after his birth creating a birth injury.

The doctor and hospital, instead of settling, tried to have the case dismissed because it was filed past the statute of limitations.

Published on: November 16, 2011

Teen Awarded £6.6m for Birth Injury

by Stephen Bilkis

A severely brain damaged teenager was awarded £6.6 million for injuries he received at birth.

The 19-year-old Oxford native was born at the city’s John Radcliffe Hospital in November 1991 and was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and mental impairment. He has a near normal life expectancy and full awareness of his disabilities and of the comparison between himself and others.

A New York Birth Injury Lawyer interested in the prolonged court cases of some birth injury claims heard that this young man was able to use most forms of assistive technology and was likely to be greatly helped by specialist equipment and care, but he would never be independent, would never enter the paid work force and would need assistance 24 hours a day.

Published on: November 3, 2011

Studies in the Netherlands Show Decline in Cerebral Palsy in Preterm Infants

by Stephen Bilkis

Some recent studies of the number of cerebral palsy in preemies have presented some good news, sources have told a New York Birth Injury Attorney. One such study that was conducted at the University Medical Center Utrecht, located in the Netherlands, found that of those infants that were treated in their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) between 1990 and 2005 that the rates of cerebral palsy decreased significantly.

Other such studies have experienced similar findings, such as study in Canada that recorded a decline in cerebral palsy over the past 30 year. Another study at the University of California, San Francisco, also noted that cases of cystic periventricular leukomalacia began to decrease after the 1990s.

Although there are some studies that do not show a decline, many researchers think that those studies include extreme preemies that are born in the 23rd or 24th weeks of pregnancy, while the current studies include only those infants who are born from week 25 or later.

Published on: October 27, 2011

Kent, England Child Awarded Millions

by Stephen Bilkis

A London High Court awarded an 8-year old child a multi-million pound settlement, a New York Birth Injury Attorney claims. The award is a result of a lawsuit that was filed on her behalf by her mother for medical negligence that occurred at birth that resulted in the girl being born with quadriplegic cerebral palsy.

The award includes an initial payment of £900,000, or about $1.5 million USD, and an annual payment of £100,000, or $162,576.85 USD that includes an annual index adjustment, sources tell the Manhattan Birth Injury Attorney. The annual payment will increase when the girl turns 19 to £155,000, or $ 252,025.50 USD.

Due to her medical condition, the child will require constant care for the rest of her life, as she cannot feed, bathe, dress, nor fend for herself. Sources informed the NY Birth Injury Lawyer that the mother filed the suit so that her child could be provided for in the event that neither she nor her husband is no longer living or in a position to care for their daughter.

Published on: September 4, 2011

Cerebral Palsy: A Serious Birth Injury

by Stephen Bilkis

Cerebral Palsy is a group of disorders that affect a person’s mobility and ability to maintain posture and balance. Cerebral Palsy is caused by a non-progressive brain abnormality, meaning that the injury will not get worse over time, although the symptoms can change. Cerebral Palsy is caused by damage to the part of the brain that controls muscle tone. Muscle tone refers to the amount of resistance to movement a muscle can sustain, or what lets your body keep you in a certain position or posture.

According to a New York Birth Injury Lawyer, in 1996 1 in every 278 children had Cerebral Palsy. In 2000 1 in every 323 suffered from the disorder. Cerebral Palsy is caused by damage to the child’s brain. The part of the brain that is damaged determines what body part is going to be affected. Damage occurs when either an injury takes place (sometimes during birth) or when a genetic condition affects the blood supply to the brain. Bacterial meningitis and other infections, or bleeding in the brain, lack of oxygen, head injury or even severe jaundice can cause Cerebral Palsy. Children who were born prematurely, or with a low birth weight are more likely to have problems that may lead to Cerebral Palsy.

A NY Birth Injury Lawyer has discussed how the Center for Disease Control funds the North Atlantic Neuro-Epidemiology Alliance (NANEA). The NANEA studies factors that cause Cerebral Palsy, including infections, bleeding, and raised temperatures during pregnancy. These studies are being performed in Denmark. All of these factors can lead to children being born with Cerebral Palsy or suffering a birth injury that leads to Cerebral Palsy.

Published on: August 13, 2011

Boy with Cerebral Palsy Needs a Motorized Wheelchair

by Stephen Bilkis

A family in Blacksburg, SC, is trying to take care of their 5-year old grandson as best they can, sources told a New York City Birth Injury Attorney. While it is currently unclear as to how the grandparents came to be the primary caretakers of this young man, they do have their work cut out for them. Their grandson has cerebral palsy, which will require him to have a lifetime of special care and services in order to survive each day.

His family is fully aware of the struggles the child faces and has been attempting to get him at least some of the things he will need, such as a motorized wheelchair. A New York Birth Injury Lawyer was informed that the family was recently turned down twice by Medicaid when they filed for assistance for the motorized wheelchair. It has been deemed necessary for the boy since he will be beginning his first year of school in the next school year. Attorneys in Manhattan and Long Island handle this type of case many times in a year.

Luckily, a local television station’s news department picked up on his story, and the family received some good news. Medicaid approved his wheelchair and he was soon sent a temporary wheelchair (non-motorized) until he can be fitted for his motorized wheelchair. A Medicaid representative stated that the problem was with the vendor the family had been working with that could not provide the type of wheelchair that was needed as the reason for the family’s claim being denied.

Published on: June 9, 2011

Cerebral Palsy Group Attempting to Reclaim $5 Million

by Stephen Bilkis

The Cerebral Palsy Society claims $5 million was placed in a fund by five former directors and thus wrested from its control. The group has taken legal action to recover the money that cannot be accessed by the new board.

The chief executive of the Focus 2000 arm of Cerebral Palsy Society has been suspended while the court action takes place.

In papers filed at the High Court in Auckland two weeks ago against the CEO and former Focus 2000 directors, a NYC Birth Injury Law Office is finding several things interesting.