Spastic Quadriplegia Cerebral Palsy

Spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy is amongst the severest forms of cerebral palsy. Infants who have certain kinds of problems early on in life are at a higher risk for eventually being diagnosed with severe spastic quadriplegia. It may arise as a result of drug use or complications during the mother's pregnancy, the infant's delivery or the early development of the infant. Complications include prematurity, bleeding in the brain, severe asphyxiation, aspiration (fluid in the lungs), severe meningitis, shaken baby syndrome, low birth weight, and drug overdose. A great number of these cases result from medical malpractice and negligence on part of the doctor (or the midwife, nurse or even the hospital). A large number of cases where cerebral palsy is suspected or confirmed could have been avoided. These avoidable mistakes can cause permanent damage to a newborn leading to pain and suffering to both the child and the caregiver for the rest of the child's life.

There are different kinds of quadriplegia and they may vary in severity. A child with severe spastic quadriplegia will not be able to walk even with a walker or other form of assistance, cannot move independently into a wheelchair, will have difficulty sitting and usually is not capable of feeding himself. The child will have a high degree of stiffness in all their limbs, and may be unable to walk. At the same time, their neck muscles will be very loose and they may have problems supporting their head. They will find speaking difficult, and may have moderate to severe learning difficulties. Frequent epileptic seizures are common in children living with spastic quadriplegia. A child with moderate spastic quadriplegia sits well, may be able to walk for short distance using a walker, can lift himself into a wheelchair by himself or assist in the transfer, and may have sufficient hand control to feed himself. Proper nutrition is very important to ensure that the child is getting enough nourishment to thrive, to give her body the nutrients needed for bone, muscle, brain and other tissue growth.

Spastic quadriplegia may result from a failure to treat infections, such as meningitis, in the mother during pregnancy or a failure to detect an umbilical cord wrapped around the baby's neck. Head trauma and a difficult delivery are amongst the other causes. If the baby is too large for a regular birth through the birth canal, the failure to advise cesarean section procedure is also negligence on part of the doctor. Severe jaundice immediately after birth if not treated properly can also lead to spastic quadriplegia. Lack of oxygen during the delivery, described in medical terms as hypoxia, is another leading cause of cerebral palsy. The failure to properly detect an Rh factor disparity (i.e. a difference between the blood of the mother and the child) can also cause it. If the Rh factor disparity is caught early the mother can be provided proper pre-natal care that could help avert any brain damage.

Doctors have an obligation to provide their patients with a reasonable level of care. When those in the healthcare profession fail to meet this obligation, intentional or not, they can be held legally accountable. Your doctor may have caused your child's spastic quadriplegia. During the pregnancy the fetus receives nourishment, i.e. oxygen and glucose, from the mother's blood via the umbilical cord. During the birthing process it becomes extremely important to ensure that the transition from the umbilical cord to the lungs of the newborn is smooth and immediate. For this purpose, the labor rooms have fetal monitors, which are designed to raise red flags whenever there is the slightest of irregularities in the baby's heart beat. It is usually a failure to adequately monitor fetal heart rate before and during labor that may lead to cerebral palsy.

If you suspect that your child's cerebral palsy was caused by medical malpractice, you might be able to file a spastic quadriplegia cerebral palsy lawsuit against the doctor, midwife, nurse or the hospital responsible.

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