Cerebral Palsy
From Wikipedia:
Cerebral palsy (CP) is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive neurological physical disabilities in the development of human movement and posture. CP arises from disturbances in the developing fetal or infant brain. The incidence in developed countries is approximately 2-2.5 per 1000 live births, and incidence has not declined over the last 60 years despite medical advances like electro-fetal monitoring.
Often, CP's resultant motor disorder(s) are accompanied by "disturbances of sensation, cognition, communication, perception, and/or behavior, and/or by a seizure disorder” (Rosenbaum et al, 2005).
Cerebral palsy can occur during pregnancy (~75%), at birth (~5%) or after birth (~15%). 80% of causes are unknown; for the small number where cause is known this can include infections, malnutrition, and/or significant head injury in very early childhood.
Cerebral palsy is a non-progressive disorder, but secondary orthopaedic deformities are common, such as hip dislocation and scoliosis of the spine. There is no known cure for CP: medical intervention is limited to the treatment and prevention of complications possible from CP's consequences. Overall, cerebral palsy ranks among the most monetarily costly congenital conditions in the world to manage effectively.
Cerebral palsy is divided into four major classifications to describe the different movement impairments. These classifications reflect the area of brain damaged. The four major classifications are:
- Spastic;
- Athetoid;
- Ataxic, and
- Mixed.
In 30% of all cases of cerebral palsy, the spastic form is found along with one of the other types. There are a number of other minor types of cerebral palsy, but these are the most common. Onset of arthritis and osteoporosis can occur much sooner in adults with CP. Further research is needed on adults with CP, as the current literature body is highly focused on the pediatric patient.
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