Cerebral Palsy is a disorder of the nervous system that is caused by abnormalities and damage to one or more specific areas of the brain. This damage occurs before, during, or immediately after birth when a child’s brain is developing. Research has determined what kind of brain and central nervous system damage occurs when someone has cerebral palsy as well as the symptoms that correlate with each injury and the effective treatment options to manage this chronic condition.
Muscle coordination and body movement dysfunction are some of the main effects of cerebral palsy, but the muscles themselves aren’t affected, the underlying problem originates in the brain and central nervous system. Cerebral palsy makes these systems incapable of sending …show more content…
Magnetic resonance imaging and head computer tomography have been used to determine how cerebral palsy damages parts of the brain. One type of damage caused by cerebral palsy is periventricular leukomalacia which is damage to the white matter of the brain that results in the posterior body of the corpus callosum thinning, the lateral ventricles becoming larger, and the lateral ventricular walls becoming irregular (Straub & Obrzut 2009). A second type of damage is bleeding of the brain caused by defective blood vessels; this is also known as intracranial hemorrhage (Straub & Obrzut 2009). In addition, cortical and subcortical damage along with multicystic encephalomalacia and other cortical lesions were found in patients with cerebral palsy (Bax, Tydeman, & Flodmark 2006). Lastly, the fourth type of damage to the brain is caused by asphyxia or lack of oxygen to the brain. Known as hypoxiischemic encephalopathy, asphyxia in infancy can wipe out tissue in the cerebral motor cortex, basal ganglia, or thalamus (Straub & Obrzut …show more content…
The most common symptoms are abnormal muscle tone and posture, and slow motor development (Krigger 2006). Cerebral palsy can also affect motor skills, speech patterns, balance, cognitive functioning, vision, and hearing (Straub & Obrzut 2009; Krigger 2006). Furthermore, there are many symptoms of cerebral palsy and this condition can be classified in four different ways based on the primary motor dysfunction. The following information is contained in the article, “Effects of Cerebral Palsy on Neuropsychological Function.” Static cerebral palsy is the most common type that is distinguished by muscle weakness, increased deep tendon reflexes and muscle tone, tremors, and trouble with gait. Another type is differentiated by uncontrolled, sluggish, and writhing movements and it is known as dyskinetic cerebral palsy. The third type of this condition would be ataxic cerebral palsy, which is characterized by impairments of coordination, balance, gait and fine motor skills. Lastly, mixed cerebral palsy is the fourth type and instead of having a primary movement disorder, it has a mixture of static, dyskinetic, and ataxic symptoms (Straub & Obrzurt
Muscle coordination and body movement dysfunction are some of the main effects of cerebral palsy, but the muscles themselves aren’t affected, the underlying problem originates in the brain and central nervous system. Cerebral palsy makes these systems incapable of sending …show more content…
Magnetic resonance imaging and head computer tomography have been used to determine how cerebral palsy damages parts of the brain. One type of damage caused by cerebral palsy is periventricular leukomalacia which is damage to the white matter of the brain that results in the posterior body of the corpus callosum thinning, the lateral ventricles becoming larger, and the lateral ventricular walls becoming irregular (Straub & Obrzut 2009). A second type of damage is bleeding of the brain caused by defective blood vessels; this is also known as intracranial hemorrhage (Straub & Obrzut 2009). In addition, cortical and subcortical damage along with multicystic encephalomalacia and other cortical lesions were found in patients with cerebral palsy (Bax, Tydeman, & Flodmark 2006). Lastly, the fourth type of damage to the brain is caused by asphyxia or lack of oxygen to the brain. Known as hypoxiischemic encephalopathy, asphyxia in infancy can wipe out tissue in the cerebral motor cortex, basal ganglia, or thalamus (Straub & Obrzut …show more content…
The most common symptoms are abnormal muscle tone and posture, and slow motor development (Krigger 2006). Cerebral palsy can also affect motor skills, speech patterns, balance, cognitive functioning, vision, and hearing (Straub & Obrzut 2009; Krigger 2006). Furthermore, there are many symptoms of cerebral palsy and this condition can be classified in four different ways based on the primary motor dysfunction. The following information is contained in the article, “Effects of Cerebral Palsy on Neuropsychological Function.” Static cerebral palsy is the most common type that is distinguished by muscle weakness, increased deep tendon reflexes and muscle tone, tremors, and trouble with gait. Another type is differentiated by uncontrolled, sluggish, and writhing movements and it is known as dyskinetic cerebral palsy. The third type of this condition would be ataxic cerebral palsy, which is characterized by impairments of coordination, balance, gait and fine motor skills. Lastly, mixed cerebral palsy is the fourth type and instead of having a primary movement disorder, it has a mixture of static, dyskinetic, and ataxic symptoms (Straub & Obrzurt