The results of a study on cerebral palsy were recently released and suggest that cases of the birth complication are on the decline, likely because of general improvements in the care of infants just before, during and after delivery.

Cerebral palsy is an injury that is common in babies that are born very premature, and can result from lack of oxygen to the baby's brain. The condition can cause severe problems with motor function.

As the human brain is extremely complex, the exact cause of cerebral palsy has puzzled doctors for many years and doctors still cannot recommend a certain way to prevent the condition. However, it is evident that cerebral palsy can occur if doctors or nurses do not use the requisite care while delivering the baby. Examples of such possible nonfeasance on behalf of doctors and nurses that can lead to the condition include:

  • the doctor or nurse fails to recognize fetal distress or a lack of oxygen;
  • the fetal heart rate was not being monitored close enough;
  • the decision to perform a C-section was delayed; or
  • the baby sustains head trauma from forceps or a vacuum assisted delivery.

Fortunately, a study conducted in the Netherlands seems to show that just the general improvements in the way infants are cared for could be responsible for the declining number of cerebral palsy cases. The researchers studied almost 3,000 infants born prematurely between 1990 and 2005. Overall, cerebral palsy rates declined 6.5 percent from 1990 until the end of the time studied. The more recent cerebral palsy cases were also less severe, the study found.

Researchers suggest that the declines in recent years of both the number of cerebral palsy cases, as well as the severity of the cases, were due to a significant decline in white matter lesions in the brain. White matter lesions are injuries that occur to the infant's brain around the time of birth.

Notably, studies in other countries, like the United States and Canada, have revealed similar reductions in the frequency and severity of cerebral palsy cases.

Source: The Los Angeles Times, "Cerebral palsy cases have dropped," Shari Roan, 3/3/11