There Are Various Types of Cerebral Palsy | DC Metro Area Medical Malpractice Law Blog

Posted by: Salvatore J. Zambri, founding partner

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Cerebral Palsy is a medical condition that often confuses both parents and doctors.  With thorough testing, however, a physician can determine the exact type of  cerebral palsy your child has.  The proper classification depends on the severity of the child’s symptoms, as well as the parts of the brain and body affected by the condition.

Here is a list of the fundamental categories of cerebral palsy:

Spastic Cerebral Palsy

This is the most common form of CP.  A child with spastic CP has muscles that are rigid, making it very difficult to move about.  There are three forms of spastic CP:

• Spastic diplegia — Legs typically cross at the knees (“scissoring”), and leg and hip muscles are tight.
• Spastic hemiplegia — One side of body affected only.  Affected side may have rigid limbs  and limbs that fail to develop fully.
• Spastic quadriplegia — The severest type of CP.  Child likely to have mental deficits along with rigidity and difficulty moving legs and arms.  Often difficult for child to walk and talk.  Seizures common, too.

Athetoid Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy

This is the second most frequently diagnosed type of cerebral palsy.  This type of CP does not affect the brain.  Although intelligence may be normal, muscle movement throughout the body may be severely limited. Muscles tone may be either tight or weak, making it challenging to walk, talk, or move about.  Drooling is common, as it is often difficult for a child with this type of CP to control facial muscles.

Ataxic Cerebral Palsy

This is the least diagnosed type of Cerebral Palsy.  ACP affects a child’s fine motor skills, making it difficult for the child to perform tasks such as tying shoes, using a scissors, manipulating parts of toys, etc.  Problems with coordination and balance are typical.  You may notice your child walking with his or her legs further apart than other children at the same age.  And when a child engages in an act, “intention tremors” may occur.  For example, if a child reaches for a toy, the child’s arm may begin to tremor, and the tremors may get more prono8unced as the child approaches the toy.

Hypotonic Cerebral Palsy

This type of CP is diagnosed early in a child’s life. Symptoms include a “floppy” head when the infant attempts to sit up, and delayed motor development. Experts believe that this type of CP results from brain damage.

Mixed Cerebral Palsy

It is common for doctors to determine that a child’s CP does not “fit” into one of the above categories.  As a result, the physician may consider the child to have “mixed” CP.

Cerebral palsy can be inherited or the result of a lack of development.  Sometime, it is caused by medical errors.  For instance, if a child is in distress in utero (before birth), but no appropriate action is taken by the hospital staff to alleviate the distress, the child may suffer CP.  This is just one example of the many ways medical errors lead to CP.  Fetal monitoring strips and other diagnostic tools are used to monitor an unborn child’s health.  They must be used and monitored effectively.

If you have any questions about your child’s health, please consult with your child’s physician immediately.

If you want to learn more about CP, please read an earlier blog I wrote about the condition.  Also, if you are wondering whether your child’s condition was caused by a medical error, feel free to contact me at 202-822-1899 or email me at [email protected]  Our medical and legal professionals are here for you, and our investigation is done at no charge.

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About the author:

Mr. Zambri is a Past-President of the Trial Lawyers Association of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. He has been acknowledged by Washingtonian magazine as a “Big Gun” and among the “top 1%” of all of the more than 80,000 lawyers in the Washington metropolitan area.  The magazine also acknowledges him as “one of Washington’s best–most honest and effective lawyers” who specializes in medical malpractice matters, product liability claims, and serious automobile accident claims.  Mr. Zambri has also been repeatedly named a “Super Lawyer” by Law and Politics magazine–a national publication that honors the top lawyers in America.

Mr. Zambri is regularly asked to present seminars to lawyers and doctors, as well as both medical and law students concerning medication errors, medical malpractice litigation, and safety improvements.

Mr. Zambri was sought after to publish a chapter regarding product liability litigation in Aspatore Books – a company that is touted as “the largest and most exclusive publisher of C-1 Level executives (CEO, CFO, CTO, CMO, Partner) from the world’s most respected companies and law firms.”  To read Mr. Zambri’s publication, entitled “Constantly Preparing To Win”, please click here.

If you have any questions about your legal rights, please email Mr. Zambri at [email protected] or call him at 202-822-1899.