Case study: £19m for child who developed cerebral palsy after CTG issues during birth

Our specialist medical negligence solicitors recently helped a child (through his litigation friend*) to claim compensation for dyskinetic cerebral palsy, which was caused during his birth.

As an anonymity order is in place, names and some information have been changed.

Background: ‘uncomplicated’ pregnancy

Our client’s mother (C) had a ‘normal’ medical and obstetric history. Her first pregnancy was uncomplicated and resulted in the normal delivery of a healthy baby boy.

C was booked to have our client, her second baby (our client, ‘K’), at a North London hospital. Her antenatal records confirmed that her pregnancy was uncomplicated and, when her contractions started and became regular, she self-referred to the labour ward.

Issues with the CTG trace

On examination, C was described as appearing uncomfortable; the baby’s head was three-fifths above her pelvis, and she was having contractions every two to three minutes, each lasting 50 seconds.

Midwives started a CTG to monitor the baby’s heartbeat, but the recording kept cutting out for long periods due to a loss of contact, making it difficult to get a clear reading.

Around an hour after arrival at the hospital, C started pushing, with her notes documenting she was fully dilated. The CTG trace continued to be disrupted by loss of contact, and the notes showed multiple attempts to fit a fetal scalp electrode (a small electrode attached to the baby’s scalp and connected to a monitor) and an apparent attempt to restore the trace by using an ultrasound transducer.

There was no CTG tracing or other record of K’s heart rate after this until delivery around half an hour later.

Delivery complications

K was delivered with the cord tightly round his neck, and thick meconium was seen upon delivery. He was described as blue in colour and limp, and he was taken immediately to the Resuscitaire.

There was an inconsistent recording of the Apgar scores (the criteria used for assessing a newborn’s health). The time of intubation was variously timed at three and four minutes, and K’s first gasp was timed at six to seven minutes in the summary neonatal records.

K was resuscitated by the paediatric staff who attended approximately three minutes after he was born and then intubated. Our client was then admitted to the Special Care Baby Unit, where he was extubated. Thereafter, he was breathing oxygen spontaneously, weaning to ‘room air’ over the course of several hours.

An MRI scan indicated a profound hypoxic ischaemic injury which, in the light of the clinical findings, occurred at or about the time of delivery.

Our client was diagnosed with dyskinetic cerebral palsy, a type of cerebral palsy that is often characterised by involuntary, uncontrollable movements, and some learning impairment.

Our experts found, and it was later admitted by the Defendant hospital, that had K been born even 10 minutes earlier, he would have avoided a hypoxic injury and would not have suffered from cerebral palsy.

Valuing and settling the dyskinetic cerebral palsy claim

The liability aspect of this case was settled some time ago, but the difficulty was valuing it. Interim payments were obtained and a Case Manager was put in place, who soon facilitated a care regime, hired a physiotherapist, occupational therapist, psychologist and speech and language therapist to assist K and his family.

As K lacked capacity, a Deputy was put in place, and steps were also taken to purchase and adapt a home suitable for him.

The medical negligence claim was placed on hold whilst the therapists started working with K. It became apparent that K would require care throughout the day and a waking night carer too. He needed lots of equipment, as recommended by the physiotherapist and occupational therapist, and a further interim payment was used for this.

After this care regime had been in place for approximately 18 months, our team was able to value the claim based on the actual care and therapy needs of K.

The case settled on a lump sum and periodical payment basis. This meant there was a sum of money for the Deputy to complete the housing adaptations and pay for the first year of care, and thereafter, in December of every year up until his death, K’s Deputy would receive annual payments to cover his care and case management. This yearly figure increases as K ages, as his needs and dependency on others become greater.

Overall, including the periodical payments and lump sum, this cerebral palsy claim settled for approximately £19 million capitalised.

Claiming compensation for cerebral palsy

Our medical negligence solicitors have decades of experience in handling complex birth injury claims, including those for disabilities connected to cerebral palsy.

To discuss your potential cerebral palsy claim, call our team on 0117 325 2929 or fill out our enquiry form.

*A litigation friend is an adult who manages legal proceedings, such as a medical negligence claim, on behalf of a child or an adult who lacks mental capacity.