All new mothers are extremely thankful during birth that their baby’s skull isn’t fully hardened. Not only does this allow some flexibility within the birth canal (mothers rejoice), but it also allows room for the baby’s brain to grow at a rapid pace.
Brain Injuries To Infants During Birth
Unfortunately, the softness of a infant’s skull also has a downside. The softer the skull, the higher the risk of potential head and brain trauma during birth and early development, which could lead to one or more forms of cerebral palsy.
Cerebral palsy can also occur while the child is in the womb as a result of an infection, such as rubella, meningitis, or herpes, or as a result of hypoxia during gestation or delivery. No matter what the cause, the last thing you want to hear after giving birth is that your baby may have suffered from a debilitating brain injury—“may have” being the scariest part.
The complexity of the brain and the fact that it contains a dozen different sections, each controlling different parts of the body, makes it hard to determine if an injury will cause cerebral palsy. However, the three main forms of CP—spastic, ataxic, and athetoid—are the direct result of damage done to specific areas of the brain.
Type of CP Based on Location
Spastic cerebral palsy results from damage to the corticospinal tracts or the motor cortex; located behind the parietal lobe, it makes up a significant portion of the top part of the brain. This incidentally raises the risk of spastic CP to 70 percent of all CP victims.
Ataxic cerebral palsy is caused by damage to the cerebellum, the part of the brain that controls coordination. It’s located in the lower back portion of the brain, where the skull meets the back of the neck. Bleeding, swelling and bruising are a common cause of ataxic CP as a result of negligent care during delivery
Athetoid cerebral palsy is often associated with damage to the basal ganglia, located near or in the brain stem; also a common place for swelling and bleeding caused by a bad delivery.
When your baby’s head is injured, or if he shows symptoms of seizures or impaired motor functions, contact your pediatrician immediately. Cerebral palsy is a devastating disorder, but treatments are available to help ease the anxiety for your baby as well as yourself.
An Experienced Virginia Child Birth Injury Attorney Can Help
Contact us today for more information on how we can help you and your little one afford and receive the treatment you deserve.