Can prolonged maternal fever cause cerebral palsy?
Cerebral palsy is a group of movement disorders caused by damage to a baby’s developing brain, often during pregnancy, birth, or shortly after. One question many parents ask is whether a mother’s high fever lasting a long time during pregnancy can lead to this condition in her child.
Maternal infections during pregnancy are a known risk for brain injuries in the unborn baby. These infections can pass from mother to child, causing swelling and inflammation in the baby’s brain. This reduces oxygen supply and raises the chance of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, or HIE, a type of brain damage linked to cerebral palsy.https://www.nationalbirthinjurylaw.com/what-causes-cerebral-palsy Examples include chorioamnionitis, meningitis, encephalitis, cytomegalovirus, herpes simplex virus, and HIV. When these reach the baby, they trigger brain swelling or even widespread body inflammation called neonatal sepsis.
High fever often comes with these infections. Any infection causing high fever can harm the brain by sparking inflammation. Even after birth, fevers from common illnesses like influenza in newborns carry risks of lasting brain damage and cerebral palsy-like symptoms later on.https://www.nationalbirthinjurylaw.com/what-causes-cerebral-palsy
Prolonged rupture of membranes, or PROM, for 24 hours or more is another factor tied to higher inflammation markers like C-reactive protein, or CRP, in babies. Studies link this to later cerebral palsy, possibly through infection or inflammation alone, even without clear sepsis.https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12735826/ Babies born after PROM often need close monitoring for early-onset sepsis, and fever can play a role in these cases.
While direct studies on prolonged maternal fever alone are limited, the fever from untreated infections clearly boosts risks. Jaundice from high bilirubin levels, another infection complication, also heightens brain damage odds in newborns.https://www.nationalbirthinjurylaw.com/what-causes-cerebral-palsy Premature babies face even higher chances, with up to 15 percent of those born at 24 to 27 weeks developing cerebral palsy.
Doctors stress quick treatment of maternal fevers and infections to lower these risks. Antenatal care, prompt antibiotic use, and newborn treatments like brain cooling help protect against brain injuries.
Sources
https://www.nationalbirthinjurylaw.com/what-causes-cerebral-palsy
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12735826/
https://www.bila.ca/does-aspirin-use-during-pregnancy-increase-the-risk-of-cerebral-palsy/
https://www.droracle.ai/articles/597766/how-can-a-pregnant-individual-with-cerebral-palsy-cp
