If your child has been affected by a birth injury leading to cerebral palsy, your doctor should work with you and your child to determine the best course of action.

Typically, the individual symptoms of the child will direct the treatment options. Medical specialists will often be called on from numerous different disciplines to discuss how holistic care can best set the child up for the future.

According to WebMD, the sooner that parents can set up these medical appointments, the easier it will be for everyone involved to decide on a treatment and management plan for cerebral palsy.

Sometimes, surgeries might also be recommended to parents as a way to help with serious deformities or contractures that make it difficult for the child to live a mobile life. Placing arms, legs, or hips in proper positions can aide with regular life.

Who might help determine the right CP treatment plan?

Since it’s likely that many doctors will be involved, the child’s unique situation will direct what other doctors are bought on to help. Some of the professionals who might provide input include a psychiatrist, physical therapist, neurologist, surgeon, occupational therapist, speech pathologist, and a pediatrician.

Can medications help?

One of the most common components of a cerebral palsy treatment plan can include medications. According to the National Institute of Health, medicines can be helpful for loosening the tightness of muscles and to improve overall function abilities and to manage complications.

Therapy is another component of treatment that can make a big difference in the life of the patient. Ongoing supportive therapy from a speech pathologist or a psychiatrist, for example, can help with some of the ways that cerebral palsy might manifest in the patient’s life and what kinds of treatments for cerebral palsy could help.

Is there a cure for cerebral palsy?

One of the most devastating things a parent can hear is that their child has a disability when it could have been prevented. A doctor’s negligence that leads to cerebral palsy means that the parents and child will have a long road ahead of them to address this condition. Unfortunately, there is no known cure for cerebral palsy.

There are, however, therapies and treatments that can be used to assist the child live as normal a life as possible. The goal of most treatments, therefore, is to enhance the patient’s quality of life.

What should we do if our child has cerebral palsy?

If your doctor has recently diagnosed your child with cerebral palsy, then it might be time to carve out options for meeting with a specialist. A specialist might be able to help prepare you, in depth, for what to expect as the parents of a child with this condition. Treatments for cerebral palsy can vary.

It’s also natural for parents to wonder whether or not this condition could have been caused by a birth injury resulting from medical malpractice when figuring out possible treatments for cerebral palsy.

If malpractice occurs, parents may consider filing legal action over the the doctor or medical staff’s negligence or mismanagement of the case. While not every diagnosis of cerebral palsy necessarily means that a doctor was negligent, it’s key for parents to be prepared and to set up a meeting with a lawyer just in case malpractice did cause the diagnosis and condition.