An Introduction to Cerebral Palsy

If someone has cerebral palsy it means that part of their brain is not working properly or has not developed. This will have happened before they were born, around the time of birth or in early childhood. The affected area of the brain is usually one of the parts which control the muscles and certain body movements. In some people, cerebral palsy is barely noticeable. Others will be more severely affected.

Cerebral palsy is more common than people realise. It is believed that currently about one in every 400 children is affected by cp, i.e. about 1,800 babies are diagnosed with cerebral palsy in Great Britain each year. It can affect people from all backgrounds. It is often not possible for doctors to give a reason why part of a baby’s brain has been injured or failed to develop. Some possible causes are:

- the mother of the baby had an infection in the early part of the pregnancy.

- the baby had a difficult or premature birth, maybe they were unable to breathe properly.

- there could have been some bleeding within the baby’s brain.

- or perhaps, and this is very rare, the baby has a genetic disorder.

Cerebral palsy jumbles messages between the brain and the muscles. There are three types of cerebral palsy, depending on which messages are affected, called spastic, athetoid and ataxic. Many people with cerebral palsy have a combination of two or more types. One of the difficult things about cerebral palsy is that its effects vary so much from one person to another making it difficult for doctors to say what type of cerebral palsy a person has.

It is therefore complicated for a doctor to predict how a young child with cerebral palsy will be affected later in life. Cerebral palsy is not progressive, it does not become more severe as the child gets older, although some difficulties may become more noticeable. There is no cure for cerebral palsy. If children are positioned well from an early age and encouraged to play in a way that helps them to improve their posture and muscle control, they can be helped to develop and achieve more things for themselves. There are also a number of therapies, which may be suitable for some individuals.

Spastic cerebral palsy

‘Spastic’ means ‘stiff’ and this form of cerebral palsy stiffens muscles and decreases the range of movement in joints. This tightness is always there and means that someone with spastic cerebral palsy has to work harder to walk or move. This is the most common form of cerebral palsy, affecting different areas of the body. If the person is only affected on one side of their body the term used is hemiplegia. If their legs are affected but their arms are unaffected or only slightly affected the term is diplegia. If both arms and both legs are equally affected then the term is quadriplegia.

Athetoid cerebral palsy

People with athetoid cerebral palsy make involuntary movements, because their muscles rapidly change from floppy to tense in a way they can’t control. Their speech can be hard to understand because they have difficulty controlling their tongue, breathing and vocal cords. Hearing problems are also common.

Ataxic cerebral palsy

People with ataxic cerebral palsy find it very difficult to balance. They may have poor spatial awareness. This means it is difficult for them to judge their position relative to other things around them. Ataxia affects the whole body. Most people with ataxic cerebral palsy can walk but they will probably be unsteady. They may also have shaky hand movements and jerky speech.

Remember it can be difficult to say what type of cerebral palsy a person has and they may have a combination of two or more types. The most important thing to remember is that no two people with cerebral palsy are the same. Some people have cerebral palsy so mildly that its effects are barely noticeable. Other people may be extremely affected. Other associated difficulties

Other difficulties and medical conditions may occur more commonly in people with cerebral palsy. Just because a person has cerebral palsy does not mean that they will also have these difficulties. However it may help you to consider some of these:

- children with cerebral palsy may have problems with constipation or sleeping. The doctor or health visitor should be able to offer advice about this.

- people with cerebral palsy may have problems with speech which are associated with difficulties in chewing and swallowing, and problems understanding the spoken word. A speech and language therapist may be able to advise.

- some people with cerebral palsy have epilepsy. Often medication can help control this.

- some people with cerebral palsy may have difficulty distinguishing and comparing shapes. This is to do with visual perception, this means someone’s ability to interpret what they have seen, not a problem with their eyesight.

- people with cerebral palsy may have learning difficulties, which means they are slow to learn. The difficulties can be mild, moderate or severe. They may have a ‘specific learning difficulty’ that is a problem with a particular activity such as reading, drawing or arithmetic, because a specific part of the brain is affected.

- it is important to remember that even someone severely physically affected by cerebral palsy may have average or above average intelligence.