Cerebral Palsy Birth Injury Lawyer Blog

Originally used to assist in regaining swallowing function in stroke victims, the Vital Stim is now being used to help individuals with cerebral palsy.

Vitalstim is a noninvasive treatment used to improve speech and swallowing in patients with cp. It works by sending a small electoral current or neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) to stimulate muscles.

Here is a link to an article and a short video about an 8 year old with cerebral palsy that is benefiting from Vitalstim. The video explains the uses and benefits of Vitalstim.

With the recent developments in cord blood stem cell treatments for children with cerebral palsy and other conditions many parents are looking into storing their child’s cord blood.

The following video is an interview with Cord Blood America’s CEO. Topics include price, uses, storage and the future of stem cells.

A placental abruption occurs when the placenta separates from the uterine wall. This can put both the mother and child at great risk.

If a placental abruption occurs the child may be deprived of oxygen. This depravation can lead to brain damage and cerebral palsy.

Below is an excellent video discussing risk factors, causes and treatments of a placental abruption.

For a more in-depth discussion on placental abruptions please see my previous post by typing “placental abruption” in the search box of this blog.

The following video discusses gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is a form of diabetes brought on by pregnancy. The video’s topics include testing, prevention, treatment and outcomes for mothers with gestational diabetes.

Gestational diabetes can cause the fetus growing larger than recommended for a vaginal delivery. If this occurs shoulder dystocia, a situation where the child’s shoulder gets stuck in the birth canal, may occur.

When shoulder dystocia occurs the child may suffer damage to a group of nerves called the brachial plexus, a condition commonly referred to as Erb’s palsy.

Additionally, shoulder dystocia may lead to the child suffering from a lack of oxygen which may cause brain damage and cerebral palsy.

It is for these reasons that expecting mothers with gestational diabetes should be monitored closely by their doctors and in many instances offered a c-section to avoid damage to the child.

The video below explains the benefits of therapeutic horseback riding for children with cerebral palsy.

For more information about hippotherapy please visit the American Hippotherapy Association.

With Father’s Day in mind I would take a moment to share a very touching piece entitled “Out of Breath” from The New York Times written by David Saxton.

Mr. Saxton discusses life after his son was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. This essay is extremely well written and well worth the read.

The following video discusses communication and writing aids for children with cerebral palsy. The video is brought to you by Bloorview Kids Rehab.

This video also offers an overview of Bloorview Kids Rehab.

With baseball season well underway I thought I would share an inspirational news clip I saw last week about a high school pitcher from Manchester with cerebral palsy.

This video is a continuation to a post I wrote last year regarding the use of magnesium sulfate to reduce the risk of cerebral palsy. At that time researchers were unsure of the reason for the reduction of cerebral palsy in children when the mother received magnesium sulfate.

The video provides a more detailed discussion on the possible reasons why magnesium sulfate reduces the incidence of cerebral palsy in children.

For more information on the study please see my previous post.

Over the past several years social media sites such as Myspace, Facebook and Twitter have gained much popularity. Now, there is a social network site specially focused on individuals and families of individuals with cerebral palsy.

The site is Cerebral Palsy Social and their website is cerebralpalsysocial.org

Also if you are interested, please feel free to visit/join our Cerebral Palsy, Erbs Palsy & Birth Injury Legal Information Group on Facebook and our Cerebral Palsy, Erbs Palsy & Birth Injury Legal Information Group onMyspace.

On our Cerebral Palsy, Erbs Palsy & Birth Injury Legal Information Groups you can find information regarding medical malpractice and birth injuries . Additionally, I host a live chat every Thursday at 7:00pm EST on Myspace and Facebook where everyone is encouraged to submit any questions they may have regarding birth injuries.

Hope to see you there!

The Umbilical cord delivers nutrients and oxygen to the fetus. Often the cord can become compressed and the supply of oxygen to the child can be cut off or diminished. This is regularly evident on the fetal heart rate monitor by decelerations of the child’s heart.

If this occurs, the doctors should take immediate action to avoid further fetal distress and often an emergency c-section should be performed.

Actions need to be taken immediately because lack of oxygen to the child can cause severe brain damage and/or cerebral palsy.

Failure to perform a TIMELY c-section resulting in lack of oxygen at birth is frequently a cause of action birth injury lawyers use in medical malpractice lawsuits.

The video below demonstrates how the umbilical cord can become compressed.

The video below features Suze Orman discussing the cost of banking cord blood on her segment “can I afford it.”

For a more detailed discussion on the costs and benefits of banking cord blood to treat children with cerebral palsy please see my previous posts on the topic.

Lately, there has been a lot of news about children receiving embryonic stem cell treatment for cerebral palsy in China.

Here is a link to an article about two families that raised money to take their children both of whom have cerebral palsy to China to receive embryonic stem cell treatment.

The article also briefly touches on the differences between umbilical cord stem cells and embryonic stem cells.

*Please note this is not an endorsement by The Law Offices of Robert A. D’Iorio, PLLC for or against the use of embryonic stem cells in the treatment of cerebral palsy.

Recently, there has been a lot of news on the new developments for treating children with cerebral palsy by using stem cells.

There are three main sources of stem cells, Adult stem cells, Embryonic stem cells and umbilical cord blood stem cells.

The video below gives a brief overview of each type of stem cell and the benefits that can be derived.

For more information on the use of stem cells to treat children with cerebral palsy and a more detailed discussion on stem cells please see my previous posts on the topic.

Recently, birth injury lawyers in Fredrick, Maryland obtained a $4 million verdict in a medical malpractice lawsuit. The lawsuit was brought on behalf of a child that suffers from cerebral palsy.

The plaintiffs in the suit alleged that the doctors failed to properly monitor the fetal heart rate allowing the child to be deprived of oxygen and that the lack of oxygen caused the child to suffer brain damage.