What Is Cerebral Palsy?
Cerebral palsy is a group of disorders caused by brain damage or abnormal brain development, which affects movement and motor skills. Cerebral refers to the brain, while palsy applies to the muscles.
The symptoms and severity of this condition vary widely from person to person. Some people with cerebral palsy experience mild symptoms, such as a slightly awkward gait, while others are completely disabled. Four primary types of cerebral palsy impact the types of symptoms your child may experience.
Spastic Cerebral Palsy
Spastic cerebral palsy is the most common type, accounting for 80 percent of cases. It causes an abnormal increase in muscle tone, which causes the muscles to become stiff or overly tight. This can inhibit some movements and make others awkward.
Spastic cerebral palsy is classified into the following sub-types, which are diagnosed based on the parts of the body affected:
- Spastic quadriplegia – This is the most severe form of spastic cerebral palsy, affecting all four limbs. Most people with this form cannot walk.
- Spastic diplegia – This is marked by spasticity primarily in the legs, with the arms unaffected or slightly affected. Tightness in the hip and legs can cause scissoring, which occurs when the legs pull together, turn inward, and cross at the knees.
- Spastic hemiplegia – This affects one side of the person’s body, often the arm more than the leg.
All forms of cerebral palsy may be accompanied by intellectual disabilities, vision problems, speech problems, hearing problems, or seizures, but these are most common in spastic quadriplegia cases.
Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy
Dyskinetic cerebral palsy causes difficulty controlling movements of the arms, legs, hands, or feet, making it difficult to sit or walk. You may also observe fast or slow involuntary movements of the affected limbs. If the face or tongue is affected, talking and swallowing may be difficult.
Ataxic Cerebral Palsy
Ataxic cerebral palsy involves difficulty with balance and coordination. Symptoms could include an unsteady gait and difficulty with fast movements and activities that require fine motor control, such as writing or buttoning a shirt. People with ataxic cerebral palsy also have difficulty controlling arm and hand movements when reaching for things.
Mixed cerebral palsy is a combination of more than one type of cerebral palsy, with spastic-dyskinetic being the most common mixed form.
