What is Cerebral Palsy?

Cerebral Palsy is a broad term generally used to refer to chronic movement or posture disorders typically caused by damage to the brain during fetal development or during birth (Vogts, Mackey, Ameratunga, Stott, 2010). This disorder can affect muscle tone, movement, and motor skills. Individuals who have Cerebral Palsy very often suffer from other disabilities as well, such as vision and hearing loss, speech problems, and learning disabilities (Nemours Network, 2011).  These physical impairments are often accompanied by sensory, perceptual, cognitive, communicative and behaviour disturbances and by epilepsy and musculoskeletal problems (Shikako-Thomas et. al, 2009). “Cerebral” refers to the brain and “Palsy” refers to a physical disorder, such as the inability to control ones muscles. Symptoms of this disorder usually are apparent in the first few years of a child’s life and once they are present, they generally do not worsen over time (Cerebral Palsy and Special Needs Children’s Organization).

Cerebral Palsy is estimated to affect 2-2.5 per 1000 live births, but this number is subject to increase due to the increased survival of low-birth weight babies, which is a group known to be at increased risk of this condition. Cerebral Palsy is a major cause of lifelong disability, where 65-90% of adults with Cerebral Palsy having close to a normal life span (Vogts et. al, 2010).


Children and adults with Cerebral Palsy can demonstrate the following characteristics:
  •     Abnormal muscle tone
  •     Poorly coordinated movements
  •     Poorly developing motor skills (i.e. the persistence of infant reflexes beyond the age they are expected to disappear)

Children with Cerebral Palsy have varying degrees of disability, ranging from mild to severe. In addition to this, individuals who have this disability may suffer from the following medical problems:
  •    Visual impairment or blindness
  •     Hearing loss
  •     Food aspiration (the sucking of food or fluid into the lungs)
  •     Gastroesophageal reflux (spitting up)
  •      Speech problems
  •      Drooling
  •      Tooth decay
  •      Sleep disorders
  •     Osteoporosis (weak, brittle bones)
  •     Behavior problems
(Nemours Network, 2011)  


Next:  Types of Cerebral Palsy
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