Cerebral palsy is defined as “a group of permanent disorders of the development of movement and posture, causing activity limitation, that is attributed to non-progressive disturbances that occurred in the developing fetal or infant brain.” It is the most common motor disability seen in childhood. Cerebral palsy is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that results in a person’s inability to control his or her muscles. (Cerebral Palsy: Updates. (2023))
Spastic cerebral palsy: Often associated with injury to or developmental differences in the part of the brain called the cerebral cortex. People who have spastic cerebral palsy experience unusually tight and stiff muscles, which can affect movement and growth. Spastic cerebral palsy accounts for about 80% of all cases of cerebral palsy.
Spastic cerebral palsy affects different areas of the body:
Diplegia affects the legs more than the arms. This type of cerebral palsy is most common in premature babies.
Hemiplegia affects one side of the body. This type of cerebral palsy is most common in babies who’ve experienced strokes or traumatic brain injuries.
Quadriplegia affects the entire body — the legs and the arms. This type of cerebral palsy is most common in babies who experience a lack of oxygen.
Dyskinetic cerebral palsy: Often associated with damage to the parts of the brain called the basal ganglia and the cerebellum. People who have dyskinetic cerebral palsy experience involuntary movements, such as tremors, or have difficulty balancing and making coordinated movements. They might also experience other types of complex movement disorders.
Mixed cerebral palsy: Describes people who experience features of spastic and dyskinetic cerebral palsy. This type of cerebral palsy is associated with damage to multiple areas of the brain.
What is Cerebral Palsy? (n.d.). Gillette Children’s.
The primary neurologic correlates of early brain injury in CP include
Delayed developmental milestones; invariably and most severely affecting the motor domain • Abnormalities of movement or motor patterns, muscle tone, and reflex patterns including persistence of primitive reflexes • Abnormalities of gait and posture ranging from toe-walking to crouched gait • Muscle weakness, poor balance, impaired selective motor control • Incoordination and ataxia
When children are diagnosed with CP, it often comes with Secondary impairments and accompanying disorders in CP.
Epilepsy: A chronic brain disease characterized by two or more unprovoked or reflex seizures more than 24 hours apart or the presence of an epilepsy syndrome [70]. Epilepsy remains a common accompanying disorder in CP occurring in 30–60% of children diagnosed with CP.
Cognitive deficits/intellectual disability (ID), behavioral, attentional, and socialization defects: The ID that occurs in severe CP is a consequence of mainly the cerebral cortical injury with injury to the basal nuclei, thalamus, and cerebellum playing an additional role. In preterm infants, intellectual function is more severely affected (significantly lower intelligence quotients [IQ ]) in those with spastic quadriplegia than spastic diplegia. White matter injury also underlies the deficits in executive function, behavioral disturbances, and socialization deficits and partly explains why language delay, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) may accompany CP, especially in children born prematurely.
Other secondary Impairments:
Visual abnormalities and cortical visual impairments
Hearing and speech deficits, feeding difficulties, and undernutrition
Musculoskeletal problems, gait abnormalities, and pain
(Cerebral Palsy: Updates. (2023))
During a study, students with CP and their parents were interviewed. From the interviews, these were the major themes and sub-themes about what they want from the teacher and school.
Students belong and benefit
Being like everyone else
Friendships mean success
Abilities develop over time and at different rates
opportunities for kids to learn together
Classroom enablers that help
Encouragement and support is essential
Teachers and aids
Education and training for staff
Planning and implementing supports
Attitude matters
Communication is crucial
Formal and informal communication
Team approach
Meetings together
Students communicating and learning together
Bourke-Taylor, H., Cotter, C., Johnson, L., & Lalor, A. (2018).
1 in 323 children are diagnosed with cerebral palsy in the US.
Every hour a baby is born with cerebral palsy in the US. 40% are born prematurely and 60% are born at term.
Approximately 18 million people of all ages have cerebral palsy worldwide.
Around 1 million people have cerebral palsy in the US.
75% experience chronic pain.
33% can’t walk.
33% have hip displacement
25% can’t verbally communicate.
20% are tube-fed.
Bourke-Taylor, H., Cotter, C., Johnson, L., & Lalor, A. (2018). Belonging, school support and communication: Essential aspects of school success for students with cerebral palsy in mainstream schools. Teaching and Teacher Education, 70, 153–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.11.016
Cerebral Palsy: Updates. (2023). IntechOpen. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.102254
What is Cerebral Palsy? (n.d.). Gillette Children’s. https://www.gillettechildrens.org/conditions-care/cerebral-palsy/what-is-cerebral-palsy?utm_source=eruptr&utm_medium=cpc&cr=cerebral_palsy_sem&utm_campaign=cerebral_palsy_sem&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwzZmwBhD8ARIsAH4v1gXyzyTco_iCe_E39RzEkNwjgrMdhBIkS3WGBKwuNrD91CeNklhJHpMaAqVuEALw_wcB