GptAdmin : Health : Cerebral_Palsy

Cerebral Palsy is a disease that is caused by an injury to an individual??s central nervous system sometime before, at, or after birth. The injuries cause changes to the structure of the individual??s brain. The physical effects such as muscle spasticity and the inability to walk may not display them selves immediately. Most commonly, Cerebral Palsy occurs before delivery due to infection, stroke, or metabolic problems such as diabetes or hyperthyroidism while in utero.

Although Cerebral Palsy cannot be cured healthcare providers can use a number of tools to help control and often times improve the symptoms. Physical therapy, braces, medications, and even surgery may be implemented.

Sites:

» Cerebral Palsy (part 1), NCBDDD, CDC -

What is cerebral palsy?

Cerebral palsy refers to a group of disorders that affect a person's ability to move and to maintain balance and posture. It is due to a nonprogressive brain abnormality, which means that it does not get worse over time, though the exact symptoms can change over a person's lifetime.

People with cerebral palsy have damage to the part of the brain that controls muscle tone. Muscle tone is the amount of resistance to movement in a muscle. It is what lets you keep your body in a certain posture or position. For example, it lets you sit up straight and keep your head up. Changes in muscle tone let you move. For example, to bring your hand to your face, the tone in your biceps muscle at the front of your arm must increase while the tone in the triceps muscle at the back of your arm must decrease. The tone in different muscle groups must be balanced for you to move smoothly.

There are four main types of cerebral palsy - spastic, athetoid, ataxic, and mixed.

Spastic: People with spastic cerebral palsy have increased muscle tone. Their muscles are stiff. Their movements can be awkward. Seventy to eighty percent of people with cerebral palsy have spasticity. Spastic cerebral palsy is usually described further by what parts of the body are affected. In spastic diplegia, the main effect is found in both legs. In spastic hemiplegia, one side of the person's body is affected. Spastic quadriplegia affects a person's whole body (face, trunk, legs, and arms).

Athetoid or dyskinetic: People with athetoid cerebral palsy have slow, writhing movements that they cannot control. The movements usually affect a person's hands, arms, feet, and legs. Sometimes the face and tongue are affected and the person has a hard time talking. Muscle tone can change from day to day and can vary even during a single day. Ten to twenty percent of people with cerebral palsy have the athetoid form of the condition.

Ataxic: People with ataxic cerebral palsy have problems with balance and depth perception. They might be unsteady when they walk. They might have a hard time with quick movements or movements that need a lot of control, like writing. They might have a hard time controlling their hands or arms when they reach for something. People with ataxic cerebral palsy can have increased or decreased muscle tone. Five to ten percent of people with cerebral palsy have ataxia.

Mixed: Some people have more than one type of cerebral palsy. The most common pattern is spasticity plus athetoid movements.

The symptoms of cerebral palsy vary from person to person. Symptoms can also change over time. A person with severe cerebral palsy might not be able to walk and might need lifelong care. A person with mild cerebral palsy, on the other hand, might walk a little awkwardly, but might not need any special help.

People with cerebral palsy can have other disabilities as well. Examples of these conditions include seizure disorders, vision impairment, hearing loss, and mental retardation.

You can learn more about the following questions about cerebral palsy below:

How common is cerebral palsy?

What causes cerebral palsy? Can it be prevented?

What is the cost or economic impact associated with cerebral palsy?

What resources are available for people with cerebral palsy and their families?

How can we improve the health of people with cerebral palsy?

How can kids learn about cerebral palsy?

Where can I go to learn more about cerebral palsy?

How common is cerebral palsy?

CDC is tracking the number of children with cerebral palsy in a five-county area in metropolitan Atlanta (Georgia). This activity is part of the Metropolitan Atlanta Developmental Disabilities Surveillance Program (MADDSP). For 1991-1994, we found that, on average, 28 of every 10,000 children 3 through 10 years of age had cerebral palsy. [Read more about MADDSP]

CDC also studied how many children in metropolitan Atlanta had cerebral palsy in the mid-1980s. This project was done as part of the Metropolitan Atlanta Developmental Disabilities Study (MADDS), which studied how common certain disabilities were in 10-year-old children. We found that 23 of every 10,000 10-year-old children had cerebral palsy. Eighty-one percent of the children had spastic cerebral palsy. Seventy-five percent had one or more other disabilities (epilepsy, mental retardation, hearing loss, or vision impairment.

In another study, CDC used data from the National Health Interview Survey - Child Health Supplement to find the number of children with cerebral palsy in the United States in 1988. The survey asked parents, or other adults, if children in the home had cerebral palsy. The study showed that 23 of every 10,000 children 17 years of age or younger had cerebral palsy. [Read a summary of the article on cerebral palsy in the United States]

References:

Boyle CA, Decoufle P, Yeargin-Allsopp M. Prevalence and health impact of developmental disabilities in US children. Pediatrics. 1994;93:399-403. [Read a summary of the Boyle et al article]

Murphy CC, Yeargin-Allsopp M, Decoufle P, Drews CD. Prevalence of cerebral palsy among ten-year-old children in metropolitan Atlanta, 1985 through 1987. Journal of Pediatrics 1993;123:S13-20. [Read a summary of the Murphy et al article]

» Cerebral Palsy - Ask the Doctor -

Cerebral Palsy - Ask the Doctor

Do you have a child with cerebral palsy?

Have you been searching for answers to your cerebral palsy questions? Learn all about cerebral palsy and the latest treatments, read articles and news, or ask the doctor why your child has cerebral palsy and find out if Lawyers Incorporated, the host of this site, will accept your case. You may be entitled to lifetime benefits. You will receive an answer to your cerebral palsy question within 24 hours. Dr. Walter Zalcman is a board certified obstetrician who has delivered thousands of babies.

» Cerebral Palsy: Hope Through Research: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) -

Introduction

In the 1860s, an English surgeon named William Little wrote the first medical descriptions of a puzzling disorder that struck children in the first years of life, causing stiff, spastic muscles in their legs and, to a lesser degree, their arms. These children had difficulty grasping objects, crawling, and walking. They did not get better as they grew up nor did they become worse. Their condition, which was called Little's disease for many years, is now known as spastic diplegia. It is just one of several disorders that affect control of movement and are grouped together under the term cerebral palsy.

Because it seemed that many of these children were born following premature or complicated deliveries, Little suggested their condition resulted from a lack of oxygen during birth. This oxygen shortage damaged sensitive brain tissues controlling movement, he proposed. But in 1897, the famous psychiatrist Sigmund Freud disagreed. Noting that children with cerebral palsy often had other problems such as mental retardation, visual disturbances, and seizures, Freud suggested that the disorder might sometimes have roots earlier in life, during the brain's development in the womb. "Difficult birth, in certain cases," he wrote, "is merely a symptom of deeper effects that influence the development of the fetus."

Despite Freud's observation, the belief that birth complications cause most cases of cerebral palsy was widespread among physicians, families, and even medical researchers until very recently. In the 1980s, however, scientists analyzed extensive data from a government study of more than 35,000 births and were surprised to discover that such complications account for only a fraction of cases -- probably less than 10 percent. In most cases of cerebral palsy, no cause of the factors explored could be found. These findings from the NINDS perinatal study have profoundly altered medical theories about cerebral palsy and have spurred today's researchers to explore alternative causes.

At the same time, biomedical research has also led to significant changes in understanding, diagnosing, and treating persons with cerebral palsy. Risk factors not previously recognized have been identified, notably intrauterine exposure to infection and disorders of coagulation, and others are under investigation. Identification of infants with cerebral palsy very early in life gives youngsters the best opportunity to receive treatment for sensory disabilities and for prevention of contractures. Biomedical research has led to improved diagnostic techniques such as advanced brain imaging and modern gait analysis. Certain conditions known to cause cerebral palsy, such as rubella (German measles) and jaundice, can now be prevented or treated. Physical, psychological, and behavioral therapy that assist with such skills as movement and speech and foster social and emotional development can help children who have cerebral palsy to achieve and succeed. Medications, surgery, and braces can often improve nerve and muscle coordination, help treat associated medical problems, and either prevent or correct deformities.

Much of the research to improve medical understanding of cerebral palsy has been supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), one of the federal government's National Institutes of Health. The NINDS is America's leading supporter of biomedical research into cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders. Through this publication, the NINDS hopes to help the more than 4,500 American babies and infants diagnosed each year, their families, and others concerned about cerebral palsy benefit from these research results.

What is Cerebral Palsy?

Cerebral palsy is an umbrella-like term used to describe a group of chronic disorders impairing control of movement that appear in the first few years of life and generally do not worsen over time. The term cerebral refers to the brain's two halves, or hemispheres, and palsy describes any disorder that impairs control of body movement. Thus, these disorders are not caused by problems in the muscles or nerves. Instead, faulty development or damage to motor areas in the brain disrupts the brain's ability to adequately control movement and posture.

Symptoms of cerebral palsy lie along a spectrum of varying severity. An individual with cerebral palsy may have difficulty with fine motor tasks, such as writing or cutting with scissors; experience trouble with maintaining balance and walking; or be affected by involuntary movements, such as uncontrollable writhing motion of the hands or drooling. The symptoms differ from one person to the next, and may even change over time in the individual. Some people with cerebral palsy are also affected by other medical disorders, including seizures or mental impairment. Contrary to common belief, however, cerebral palsy does not always cause profound handicap. While a child with severe cerebral palsy might be unable to walk and need extensive, lifelong care, a child with mild cerebral palsy might only be slightly awkward and require no special assistance. Cerebral palsy is not contagious nor is it usually inherited from one generation to the next. At this time, it cannot be cured, although scientific research continues to yield improved treatments and methods of prevention.

» Cerebral Palsy: a Guide for Care -

WHAT IS THIS CONDITION

WHAT CAUSES CEREBRAL PALSY?

We do not know the cause of most cases of cerebral palsy. That is, we are unable to determine what caused cerebral palsy in most children who have congenital CP. We do know that the child who is at highest risk for developing CP is the premature, very small baby who does not cry in the first five minutes after delivery, who needs to be on a ventilator for over four weeks, and who has bleeding in his brain. Babies who have congenital malformations in systems such as the heart, kidneys, or spine are also more likely to develop CP, probably because they also have malformations in the brain. Seizures in a newborn also increase the risk of CP. There is no combination of factors which always results in an abnormally functioning individual. That is, even the small premature infant has a better than 90 percent chance of not having cerebral palsy. There are a surprising number of babies who have very stormy courses in the newborn period and go on to do very well. In contrast, some infants who have rather benign beginnings are eventually found to have severe mental retardation or learning disabilities.

CEREBRAL PALSY IN THE NEWBORN

Many children with cerebral palsy have a congenital malformation of the brain, meaning that the malformation existed at birth and was not caused by factors occurring during the birthing process. Not all of these malformations can be seen by the physician, even with today's most sophisticated scans, but when CP is recognized in a newborn, a congenital malformation is suspected. When a diagnosis of CP is made, the mother and father often feel guilty and wonder what they did to cause their child to have this disorder. While it is certainly true that good prenatal care is an essential part of preventing congenital problems, it must be stated that congenital problems, or "birth defects," often occur even when the mother has strictly followed her physician's advice in caring for herself and the developing infant. Though the causes of "birth defects" are usually unknown, we do know that the developing brain can be affected by several factors. When the fetus is exposed to certain chemicals or infections through the expectant mother, for example. The developing brain can be injured if the expectant

mother suffers severe physical trauma, the fetal brain can be injured, too, but this is rare. Finally, prematurity and a low birth weight have been shown to be related to an increased incidence of specific disorders. Many chemicals are known to adversely affect the developing brain, alcohol being the most commonly used. The term Fetal Alcohol Syndrome describes the long-term, multi-system effect of alcohol on a child whose mother abused alcohol during the pregnancy. When a fetus is exposed to large amounts of alcohol, several body systems, including the neurological system will almost certainly suffer damage. Cigarette smoking by the mother has been shown to decrease birth weight, and low birth weight is associated with several disorders, including cerebral palsy. Severe malnutrition in the mother can adversely affect brain growth in the fetus, and it, too, can result in a low birth weight. The use of cocaine or crack by the expectant mother is associated with blood vessel complications, and these complications affect many organs as well as the central nervous system. Cocaine use is increasing and thus becoming more prevalent as cause of brain damage in infants. Most infants whose mothers used cocaine during pregnancy develop mental retardation rather than cerebral palsy, however. Infections such as rubella (German measles), toxoplasmosis, and cytomegalovirus (CMV), ( if a woman has them during pregnancy), also may injure the brain of the fetus. Rubella can be prevented by immunization, prior to becoming pregnant, and the chances of becoming infected with toxoplasmosis can be minimized by not handling the feces of cats and by avoiding raw or uncooked meat.

Congenital infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV, the virus that causes AIDS) also causes brain damage in children, though it usually causes mental retardation rather than CP. It is likely that many other infections in the expectant mother injure the developing fetus, but they are not recognized as causative factors because the woman who has the infection either does not recognize the symptoms of infection or is symptom-free. Premature infants are at a much higher risk for developing cerebral palsy than full-term babies, and the risk increases as the birth weight decreases. Between 5 and 8 percent of infants weighing less than 1500 grams (3 pounds) at birth develop cerebral palsy, and infants weighing less than 1500 grams are 25 times more likely to develop cerebral palsy than infants who are born at full term weighing more than 2500 grams.

any premature infants suffer bleeding within the brain, called intraventricular hemorrhages, intracranial hemorrhages. Again, the highest frequency of hemorrhages is found in the babies with the lowest weight: the problem is rare in babies who weigh more than 2000 grams (4 pounds). This bleeding may damage the part of the brain that controls motor function and thereby lead to cerebral palsy. If the hemorrhage results in destruction of normal brain tissue (a condition called periventricular leukomalacia) and small cysts around the ventricles and in the motor region of the brain, then that infant is more likely to have CP than an infant with hemorrhages alone. Does prematurity "cause" cerebral palsy, or do some infants who are born prematurely have abnormal brains from the beginning, leading to their premature births? We do not know the answer to this question.

CEREBRAL PALSY FROM THE BIRTHING PROCESS

There are no specific events that, if they occur during pregnancy, delivery, or infancy, will always occurring at birth or right after birth). This is apparently why the incidence of CP in undeveloped and poverty stricken areas of the world, where infant mortality is very high, is the same as in northern Europe, where infant mortality is the lowest. It also explains why modern obstetrical care, including monitoring and a high rate of Cesarian section, has lowered infant mortality rates but not the incidence of cerebral palsy. One large study, for example, has shown that more than 60 percent of all pregnancies have at least one complication, and that most of these complications cause no problems. For instance, 25 percent of all newborns have the umbilical cord wrapped around their neck, and 16 percent passed meconium (had the first bowel movement) at the time of birth. These "birth events" and the development of CP have only a small correlation. In other words, the chances of a child developing CP were nearly the same whether the child was born with a cord wrapped around her neck or not. On the other hand, newborns in this study who had very low Apgar scores (less than 3 at 20 minutes) had a risk 250 times greater than infants with normal Apgar scores of developing cerebral palsy. An Apgar score at this level suggests that the infant suffered severe asphyxia (lack of sufficient oxygen to the brain) during birth. Half of the infants who suffered severe asphyxia during birth did not develop cerebral palsy, however. When CP is diagnosed in childhood, it is often discovered that the child suffered asphyxia at birth, but the asphyxia is usually considered the symptom of an otherwise sick baby with a neurological problem, and not the primary cause of CP. In two different large studies, only about 9 percent of children with CP were thought to have CP directly and exclusively related to asphyxia at delivery. Ninety-one percent of the babies had other inherent causes which led to prematurity or perinatal or neonatal problems (problems In the nineteenth century, Dr. William John Little described cerebral palsy and stated that the condition was due to birth injury in most cases. Cerebral palsy is also known as Little's disease and static encephalopathy, but the term cerebral palsy is most widely used. Dr. Sigmund Freud (who was a prominent neurologist before he founded the field of psychiatry) also investigated the causes of cerebral palsy. Freud thought that the condition was due to something which occurred before the child's birth. He argued that the problems seen at birth were often due to an abnormality present in the baby before birth, rather than being caused by the birthing process. This view of Freud's was greatly ignored in the first half of this century, but recent research has lent support to the idea that cerebral palsy is more often a result of a congenital abnormality than to an injury sustained at birth. Nevertheless, the birthing process can be traumatic for the infant, and injuries occurring during birth do sometimes cause cerebral palsy. Modern prenatal care and improved obstetric care have significantly reduced the incidence of birth injury, but it is unlikely that it will ever be completely eliminated.

CEREBRAL PALSY IN THE INFANT AND CHILD

During infancy and early childhood, the child is completely dependent on others for his or her safety and protection. Protecting the child from injury is one of the most important responsibilities of the

child's caregivers. One such injury is asphyxia, which can damage the brain in a variety of ways,

and is the number one cause of CP in this age group. The three most common causes of asphyxia in the young child are: choking on foreign objects such as toys and pieces of food (including peanuts, popcorn, and hot dogs); poisoning; and near drowning. The brain may also be damaged when it is physically traumatized as a result of a blow to the head. A child who falls or is involved in a motor vehicle accident or is the victim of physical abuse may suffer irreparable injury to the brain. One form of child abuse is the shaken baby syndrome, in which the caretaker is trying to quiet the baby by shaking too vigorously, causing the brain to strike repeatedly against the skull under high pressure.

Severe infections, especially meningitis or encephalitis, can also lead to brain damage in this age group. Meningitis is inflammation of the meninges ( the covering of the brain and the spinal cord), usually caused by a bacterial infection, and encephalitis is brain inflammation which may be caused by bacterial or viral infections. Either of these infections can cause disabilities ranging from hearing loss to CP to severe retardation.

WHAT ARE SOME DISORDERS WHICH ARE NOT CEREBRAL PALSY BUT RESEMBLE CEREBRAL PALSY?

Children with disabilities have many problems in common, especially problems involving interactions with family members and society at large. The physical and medical problems of children with disabilities vary widely, however. Some of the problems caused by various disorders resemble those affecting children with cerebral palsy, but on closer inspection the medical issues turn out to be quite distinct. Children with spinal cord dysfunction, for example, face medical problems such as insensate skin and bowel and bladder dysfunction, which differ markedly from the medical problems faced by children with cerebral palsy. Spinal cord dysfunction may be a result of spinal cord injury, spina bifida (meningomyelocele), or a congenital spinal cord malformation. Another large group of children who at time may look similar to those with cerebral palsy are children with temporary motor problems resulting from closed head injuries, seizures, drug overdoses, or some brain tumors. The medical issues for this group of children are also different

from the medical issues for children with cerebral palsy, because these injuries can occur at any age

and the severity of the problems caused by these injuries changes over time. We can also say that disorders that are primarily of muscle, nerve, and bone are not cerebral palsy by definition. Such conditions include muscular dystrophy, peripheral neuropathies such as Charcot-Marie- Tooth disease, and osteogenesis imperfecta. All of these conditions are associated with specific medical problems. Children with progressive neurologic disorders (including Rett's syndrome, leukodystrophy, and Tay-Sach's disease) also have medical needs which are different from those of children with cerebral palsy.

Some children with chromosomal anomalies (for example, trisomy 13 and 18) or congenital disorders (hereditary spastic paraplegia, for example) may appear similar to children with cerebral palsy; others, such as children with Down's syndrome, appear very different from children with cerebral palsy. Children with these disorders have some problems in common with children who have cerebral palsy; they also have problems that are unique for children with that specific disorder.

HOW IS A DIAGNOSIS OF CEREBRAL PALSY MADE?

Many of the normal developmental milestones, such as reaching for toys (3-4 months), sitting (6-7 months), and walking (10-14 months), are based on motor function. A physician may suspect cerebral palsy in a child whose development of these skills is delayed. In making a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, the physician takes into account the delay in developmental milestones as well as physical findings that might include abnormal muscle tone, abnormal movements, abnormal reflexes and persistent infantile reflexes. Making a definite diagnosis of cerebral palsy is not always easy, especially before the child's first birthday. In fact, diagnosing cerebral palsy usually involves a period of waiting for the definite and permanent appearance of specific motor problems. Most children with cerebral palsy can be diagnosed by the age of 18 months, but eighteen months is a long time for parents to wait for a diagnosis, and this is understandably a difficult period for them. Making a diagnosis of cerebral palsy is also difficult when, for example, a two-year- old has suffered a head injury. The child may immediately appear to be severely injured, and three months after the injury he may have symptoms that are typical of a child with cerebral palsy. But one year after the injury such a child may be completely normal. This child does not have cerebral palsy. Although he has a scar on his brain, the scar is not permanently impairing his motor activities. After injury, waiting and observing are necessary before the diagnosis can be made.

DO X-RAYS OR OTHER TESTS HELP IN DIAGNOSIS CEREBRAL PALSY?

As noted above, in making a diagnosis of cerebral palsy the most meaningful aspect of the examination is the physical evidence of abnormal motor function. A diagnosis of cerebral palsy cannot be made on the basis of an x-ray or blood test, though the physician may order such tests to exclude other neurologic diseases (such as those mentioned above). Blood tests and chromosome analysis are helpful in diagnosing hereditary conditions that may influence the parents' future child-bearing decisions. When the tests indicate that a child's condition is something other than cerebral palsy and that the condition is inherited, family members will benefit from genetic counselling. Cerebral palsy is not a hereditary condition, however, and these tests will neither establish nor rule out a diagnosis of CP.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and Computed Tomography (CT) scans are often ordered when the physician suspects that the child has cerebral palsy. These tests may provide evidence of hydrocephalus (an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the cerebral ventricles), and they may be used to exclude other causes of motor problems. These scans do not prove whether a child has a cerebral palsy; nor do they predict how a specific child will function as she grows. Thus, children with normal scans may have severe cerebral palsy, and children with clearly abnormal scans occasionally appear totally normal or have only mild physical evidence of cerebral palsy. As a group, though, children with cerebral palsy do have brain scars, cysts, and other changes which show up on scans more frequently than in normal children. Therefore, when a scar is seen on a CT scan of the brain of a child whose physical examination suggests he may have cerebral palsy, the scar is one more piece of evidence indicating that the child is likely to have motor problems in the future.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CEREBRAL PALSY?

Cerebral palsy may be classified by the type of movement problem (such as spastic or athetoid cerebral palsy) or by the body parts involved (hemiplegia, diplegia, and quadriplegia). Spasticity refers to the inability of a muscle to relax, while athetosis refers to an inability to control the movement of a muscle. Infants who at first are hypotonic wherein they are very floppy may later develop spasticity. Hemiplegia is cerebral palsy that involves one arm and one leg on the same side of the body, whereas with diplegia the primary involvement is both legs. Quadriplegia refers to a pattern involving all four extremities as well as trunk and neck muscles. Another frequently used classification is ataxia, which refers to balance and coordination problems. The motor disability of a child with CP varies greatly from one child to another; thus generalizations about children with cerebral palsy can only have meaning within the context of the subgroups described above. For this reason, subgroups will be used in this book whenever treatment and outcome expectations are discussed. Most professionals who care for children with cerebral palsy understand these diagnoses and use them to communicate about a child's condition.

As noted above, a useful method for making subdivisions is determined by which parts of the body are involved. Although almost all children with cerebral palsy can be classified as having hemiplegia, diplegia, or quadriplegia, there are significant overlaps which have led to the use of additional terms, some of which are very confusing. To avoid confusion, most of the discussion in his book will be limited to the use of these three terms. Occasionally such terms as paraplegia, double hemiplegia, triplegia, and pentaplegia may occasionally be encountered by the reader; these classifications are also based on the parts of the body involved. The dominant type of movement or muscle coordination problem is the other method by which children are subdivided and classified to assist in communicating about the problems of cerebral palsy. The component which seems to be causing the most problem is often used as the categorizing term. For example, the child with spastic diplegia has mostly spastic muscle problems, and most of the involvement is in the legs, but the child may also have a smaller component of athetosis and balance problems. The child with athetoid quadriplegia, on the other hand, would have involvement of both arms and legs, primarily with athetoid muscle problems, but such a child often has some ataxia and spasticity as well. Generally a child with quadriplegia is a child who is not walking independently. The reader may be familiar with other terms used to define specific problems of movement or muscle function terms such as: dystonia, tremor, ballismus, and rigidity. The words severe, moderate, and mild are also often used in combination with both anatomic and motor function classification terms (severe spastic diplegia, for example), but these qualifying words do not have any specific meaning. They are subjective words and their meaning varies depending on the person who is using them.

» Cerebral Palsy:kidshealth.org -

Have you ever heard a family member talk about your first step or the first word you spoke? For kids with cerebral palsy, called CP for short, taking a first step or saying a first word is not as easy. That's because CP is a condition that can affect the things that kids do every day.

Some kids with CP use wheelchairs and others walk with the help of crutches or braces. In some cases, a kid's speech may be affected or the person might not be able to speak at all.

Cerebral palsy (say: seh-ree-brel pawl-zee) is a condition that affects thousands of babies and children each year. It is not contagious, which means you can't catch it from anyone who has it. The word cerebral means having to do with the brain. The word palsy means a weakness or problem in the way a person moves or positions his or her body.

A kid with CP has trouble controlling the muscles of the body. Normally, the brain tells the rest of the body exactly what to do and when to do it. But because CP affects the brain, depending on what part of the brain is affected, a kid might not be able to walk, talk, eat, or play the way most kids do.

The Types of CP

There are three types of cerebral palsy: spastic (say: spass-tick), athetoid (say: ath-uh-toid), and ataxic (say: ay-tak-sick). The most common type of CP is spastic. A kid with spastic CP can't relax his or her muscles or the muscles may be stiff.

Athetoid CP affects a kid's ability to control the muscles of the body. This means that the arms or legs that are affected by athetoid CP may flutter and move suddenly. A kid with ataxic CP has problems with balance and coordination.

A kid with CP can have a mild case or a more severe case - it really depends on how much of the brain is affected and which parts of the body that section of the brain controls. If both arms and both legs are affected, a kid might need to use a wheelchair. If only the legs are affected, a kid might walk in an unsteady way or have to wear braces or use crutches. If the part of the brain that controls speech is affected, a kid with CP might have trouble talking clearly. Another kid with CP might not be able to speak at all.

No one knows for sure what causes most cases of cerebral palsy. For some babies, injuries to the brain during pregnancy or soon after birth may cause CP. Children most at risk of developing CP are small, premature babies (babies who are born many weeks before they were supposed to be born) and babies who need to be on a ventilator (a machine to help with breathing) for several weeks or longer. But for most children, the problem in the brain occurs before the baby is born, and doctors don't know why.

» Ontario Federation for Cerebral Palsy -

Did you receive one of these?

The 58th Annual Conference of the Ontario Federation for Cerebral Palsy will be held in Toronto at the Airport Marriott Hotel on October 21-23, 2005.

This year’s conference will focus on government funding of the supports provided for people with disabilities. It will be facilitated by John Lord - a researcher who has many years of experience in different government systems around the world.

What makes your doctor exceptional ?

The O.F.C.P would like to acknowledge a doctor who has demonstrated a particular interest and expertise in dealing with the health needs and health issues of people with Cerebral Palsy. We are therefore asking that individuals submit names of possible candidates along with a short summary of 'what makes your doctor exceptional' A committee will review all submissions and will determine a successful recipient. Please submit all applications to the O.F.C.P . Thanking you in advance for your time and consideration to this matter.

Getting the help you need

Do you or a family member have cerebral palsy and require help with bathing, dressing, meals or homemaking?

If so, you may be eligible for help from your local Community Care Access Centre (CCAC), or from a community service agency. Whether you prefer to stay at home with family, or live on your own, there are a variety of support services that provide flexible and practical solutions. These services can be offered in your home or at other locations within the community (such as school, work or other).

For more information about the kinds of help that are available, and about rights, complaints, and related topics please click here…

New Books

The OFCP is proud to present four new information booklets, Sexuality and Cerebral Palsy, Aging and Cerebral Palsy, Medical Issues and Cerebral Palsy, and Personal Choice and Cerebral Palsy, which we hope will be of use to people with CP, their friends, family and caregivers

Last Updated: 2005-10-28 01:06:11