What Is Cerebral Palsy?

Cerebral palsy is an unusual and very serious disease that affects the movement of muscles in the body. It is caused by brain damage to areas of the brain that control movement, which leads to muscle weakness and muscle abnormalities. Cerebral palsy can occur at any age, regardless of gender.

Causes

Cerebral palsy is caused by damage to the brain or damage to the nerves that control muscles. The most common cause of cerebral palsy is birth injuries, such as premature birth or traumatic delivery. However, it can also be caused by injury or illness during pregnancy or infancy.

Causes Related To Negligence

Medical negligence can cause cerebral palsy. Medical negligence may include mistakes on the part of the medical professional or a failure to use proper medical technology. Medical negligence may also include failure to recognize the symptoms of cerebral palsy.

Symptoms

Cerebral palsy will cause different symptoms in each person. Some people may have muscle weakness and muscle atrophy, while others may have muscle stiffness and abnormal movement. The symptoms can vary from mild to severe, depending on the amount of damage to the brain and the area of the brain that controls movement.

Some symptoms of cerebral palsy include:

• Numbness and tingling in arms or legs (paralysis)
• Muscle weakness or spasticity (involuntary movements)
• Muscle rigidity (involuntary movements)
• Muscle deformities (particularly in the arms and legs)
• Loss of coordination
• Speech delay
• Poor muscle tone (hypertonia)
• Muscle atrophy
• Difficulty swallowing or breathing

Treatment

• Physical therapy and occupational therapy will help improve the movement and muscle functions of the body. They will also help improve muscle strength and coordination. For example, an occupational therapist can teach a quadriplegic to use a wheelchair more effectively. An occupational therapist can also teach a young child with cerebral palsy how to write legibly.

There is no cure for cerebral palsy, but there are some treatments that may help slow down the progression of the disease. These include:

• Botox injections. Botox injections may improve muscle tone in the facial muscles and improve abnormal facial expressions in people with cerebral palsy.
• Stimulation of nerve fibers using electrodes placed on the skin. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) may reduce muscle spasticity, improve urinary dysfunction, and improve walking in people with spastic cerebral palsy.

Diagnosis

Cerebral palsy is typically diagnosed during infancy. During a physical exam, doctors look for signs of abnormal muscle control, abnormal muscle tone, abnormal reflexes, abnormal movements, and postural abnormalities. Doctors can also test muscle strength by having a person try to hold their breath while they slowly breathe out. They can also test arm strength by asking someone to lift their arm while they slowly breathe out.

Doctors might also perform a nerve conduction study to test nerve function. A nerve conduction study involves recording impulses along nerves as they travel down the body. The impulses are then transmitted to a computer where they are analyzed to determine if they are normal or not. A child with cerebral palsy will typically have abnormal impulses, which may help doctors decide if there is a problem with the brain or if the child has a different type of movement disorder instead (such as cerebral palsy or hyperkinesis).

Statistics

Cerebral palsy affects nearly one out of every 700 babies born each year in the United States. However, it is not always easy to determine how many people have cerebral palsy because this disease does not always cause significant symptoms immediately after birth. Also, many people who have cerebral palsy do not know they have it because they may not experience symptoms until later in life. In some cases, people with cerebral palsy may not be diagnosed until later in life when they are older and their symptoms are more severe.

This is why doctors believe that there are more cases of cerebral palsy than what is officially recorded each year. A 2010 study published in the Journal of Pediatric Neurology found that there were 532,627 reported cases of cerebral palsy each year in the United States alone.2 The same study estimated that this number was likely far higher due to under-reporting because people with cerebral palsy do not always seek medical care for their symptoms.

There is a lot you need to know about cerebral palsy if you are a family member or friend of someone who is affected by this disease. Knowing the signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy, as well as the diagnosis and treatment options, will help you to have a better understanding of what your loved one is going through.