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Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy


Signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy can differ greatly from person to person. Symptoms can range from mild to severe, may affect only one side of the body or both sides and may involve only the arms or the legs or both. Symptoms and signs of cerebral palsy generally become evident before a child turns two though they can be noticed as early as 3 months. These include:

  • Delays in milestones such as reaching, sitting, rolling, crawling or standing
  • Lethargy / lack of alertness
  • Constant fussiness in newborns
  • Poor feeding abilities
  • Low muscle tone
  • Abnormal reflexes
  • Favoring of one side of the body
  • Asymmetries of movement – one side of the body may move more easily than the other
  • After six months, the baby’s muscle tone may change from floppy to stiff
  • Continuation of infantile reflexes that normally disappear after three to six months
  • Uncontrolled movements
  • Muscles that are tight and not stretchable
  • Strange gait where the child walks with knees touching or crossed in front of each other, or walks on his toes, or with arms tucked closely to the sides
  • Joints are contracted and do not open up to their full range of movement
  • Weak muscles or loss of movement on certain groups of muscles
  • Jerky movements of the arms, legs, hands, and feet. These can also include twisting of limbs and writhing motions that worsen when the child is stressed
  • Skeletal deformities where people may have stunted limbs on the side of the body affected by cerebral palsy. In the long term this can result in scoliosis.
  • Lack of balance
  • Tremors
  • Lack of coordination
  • IQ may be or below normal
  • Mental retardation (most children with cerebral palsy are not necessarily mentally retarded. Rather the more degree of  retardation, the higher the possibility of other defects and conditions developing)
  • Problems with speech
  • Problems with vision and hearing
  • Seizures
  • Body pain
  • Digestive problems
  • Constipation
  • Vomiting
  • Drooling
  • Dental problems with higher number of cavities and tooth decay
  • Slower growth
  • Breathing difficulties
  • Incontinence

Causes
Diagnosis