Cerebral Palsy Diagnosis

Diagnosing cerebral palsy is a difficult process as there other health problems that can mimic the condition. A cerebral palsy diagnosis does not necessarily follow even though a child may exhibit some of the symptoms outlined below. Children under the age of six months may demonstrate some or all of the following indicative symptoms:

• Lethargy
• Irritability
• Abnormal crying
• Trembling of the arms and legs
• Feeding difficulties
• Poor muscle tone
• Abnormal posture
• Seizures, staring spells, eye fluttering or body twitching
• Abnormal reflexes
• Changing muscle tone from floppy to very stiff
• Hand held in tight fist
• Asymmetry of movement

Brain damaged children over the age of six months usually have obvious difficulties and are often slow to reach developmental milestones, such as rolling over, sitting up, crawling, walking and talking. Parents are more likely to notice developmental delay and abnormal behaviour if this is not their first child. Medical professionals often hesitate to initially reach a diagnosis due to the fact that a child's central nervous system may recover after an injury occurs and instead, they may use broader terms such as:

• Developmental delay
• Neuromotor dysfunction
• Motor disability
• Central nervous system dysfunction
• Static encephalopathy

Prior to making a cerebral palsy diagnosis a consultant must rule out other disorders that cause movement problems, identify any coexisting disorder, and determine if the condition is changing. There are a number of techniques available:

• Declining motor skills may indicate genetic disease, muscle or metabolic disorder, or tumour in the nervous system.
• An electroencephalogram (EEG) traces electrical activity in the brain and can reveal patterns that suggest a seizure disorder.
• Electromyography and nerve conduction studies can identify a nerve or muscle disorder.
• Chromosome analysis may be performed to identify a genetic anomaly.
• Thyroid function tests may reveal low levels of thyroid hormone, which can produce several congenital defects and severe mental retardation.
• A high level of ammonia in the blood is toxic to the central nervous system. This may be due to a liver disorder or a defect in metabolism.
• Imaging tests may diagnose hydrocephalus, structural abnormalities, and tumours.
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) defines abnormalities of white matter and motor cortex.
• A head CT scan can show congenital malformations, haemorrhage, and periventricular leukomalacia in infants.
• Ultrasound can detect cysts and abnormal structures in the brain.

A cerebral palsy diagnosis is not made quickly or easily because the extent of the child's problems may not become clear for some time. Doctors need to test the child's motor skills and look carefully at the medical history and will look for slow development, abnormal muscle tone, and unusual posture. Intelligence testing is used to help determine if a child has any intellectual impairment, however intelligence testing a child with movement difficulties does not always give a true result. A doctor must move carefully towards a diagnosis after eliminating all other possible causes.

If you believe that your child's injury was caused by medical negligence and you would like free advice from an experienced birth injury solicitor then just complete the cerebral palsy diagnosis report form and a member of The Law Society panel of personal injury experts will telephone you to discuss your child's claim.