Cerebral palsy, often referred to as CP for short, is a condition that results from injury to the brain. The injury may occur before, during or shortly following birth. The word cerebral refers to the brain and palsy to difficulty in control of movement . Cerebral palsy is neither progressive nor communicable. Although it is not curable, medical and therapy intervention can help.

Depending on which part of the brain has been injured, different areas of the body will be involved or affected. The symptoms can vary greatly. For instance one or more of the following areas can be involved: general movement, walking, vision, hearing, speech, or learning.

Examples, Subsets and Synonyms for Cerebral Palsy (CP) (static encephalopathy)

Diplegic Cerebral Palsy (congenital diplegia, spastic diplegia)
Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy (congenital quadriplegia, spastic quadriplegia)
Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy (congenital hemiplegia, spastic hemiplegia)
Choreoathetoid Cerebral Palsy (choreoathetosis, extrapyramidal cerebral palsy, dyskinetic cerebral palsy, athetoid cerebral palsy)

Related Marcus Autism Center Clinical Programs

Pediatric Neurodevelopmental Center

Additional Resources

Worldwide Education and Awareness for Movement Disorders
(www.wemove.org)

United Cerebral Palsy
(www.ucpa.org)

Medtronic
(www.medtronic.com)

Understanding Disabilities, Creating Opportunities
(www.ucp.org)

KidsMove
(www.wemove.org/kidsmove/)

Reaching for the Stars: A Foundation Of Hope For Children With Cerebral Palsy
(www.reachingforthestars.org)