SPASTIC DIPLEGIA
HEMIPLEGIA - QUADRIPLEGIA - MONOPLEGIA - TRIPLEGIA

Physically this condition is classified in two ways relating to the damaged area within the brain and how that damage affects movement :-

1. Categories relevant to the affected areas of the child’s physique include monoplegis, triplegia, hemiplegia, quadriplegia and spastic diplegia and are categorised as follows :-

   monoplegia – just one limb, usually an arm, suffers a disability

   triplegia – affects three limbs, most often both arms and one leg

   spastic diplegia - both legs or both arms are involved and the degree of disability varies with legs often being more severely affected than arms

   spastic hemiplegia – just one side of the body is affected with the arm usually showing more disability than the leg

   spastic quadriplegia – double spastic diplegia - both legs and both arms suffer problems and it is usually associated with mental disability

2. Categories relevant to the affected areas of the brain can be mixed but the principle categories are as follows :-

   spastic - affects the majority of those with this condition and is characterised by high muscle tone which causes stiff jerky motion, posture difficulties and problems with gripping, holding and releasing objects.

   athetoid - affects about 20% of those with this condition and is characterised by both high and low muscle tone throughout different muscle groups causing involuntary, jerky and sudden uncoordinated movements mostly affecting the face, arms and trunk, hampering speech, grip and other skills that require hand/eye co-ordination.

   ataxic - affects only 5% of children and is characterised by low muscle tone, poor coordination, inadequate motor skills and difficulty with movement, balance and distance perception. Shaking and unsteadiness during movement is typical often with the presence of ‘intention tremors’.

If your child is suffering from monoplegis, triplegia, hemiplegia, quadriplegia or spastic diplegia and you have any suspicion that it may have been caused by medical negligence you need to take urgent advice for a specialist solicitor. Legal aid is available for almost all children to pursue a compensation claim for medical negligence. The Legal Services Commission which administers public funding will not consider the assets and income of the parents when deciding on the issue of a legal aid certificate. Only the child’s financial status is considered which ensures that almost all children will receive legal aid with a nil financial contribution.

The Limitation Act 1980 governs the time limits for personal injury claims. The time limit of three years does not start running until a minor is aged 18 years and it will never start running against the permanently mentally incapacitated. Claims should however be started as soon as possible as memories fade and records become lost or corrupted by time.

When you suspect that your child has been the victim of medical negligence it can be difficult to know what to do. Our free advice centre is ready to call you to answer any questions you might have. If you would like to speak to a specialist solicitor about a cerebral palsy compensation claim free of charge and with no further obligation, just complete and send the contact form or use the helpline or send a message by email. If after talking to us you decide not to take your potential claim further then you are quite at liberty to do so and you will not be charged for our advice which is given free of charge.