YOUR CHILD HAS CEREBRAL PALSY
YOU DESERVE HELP, ADVICE & BENEFITS

SYMPTOMS AND SIGNS OF CEREBRAL PALSY

Early Infancy (0-3 Months)

• Excessive lethargy or irritability

• High pitched cry

• Poor head control

• Weak suck/tongue thrust/tonic bite

• Oral hypersensitivity

• Decreased interest in surroundings

• Stiff or floppy posture

• Abnormal or prolonged reflexes

Later Infancy

Inability to perform motor skills as indicated:

• Control hand grasp by 3 months

• Rolling over by 5 months

• Independent sitting by 7 months

Abnormal Developmental Patterns:

• Hand preference by 12 months

• Excessive arching of back

• Log rolling

• Abnormal or prolonged parachute response

Abnormal Developmental Patterns after 1 year of age:

• “W sitting” – knees flexed, legs extremely rotated

• “Bottom shuffling” Scoots along the floor

• Walking on tiptoe or hopping

Doctors diagnose cerebral palsy by testing motor skills and reflexes, looking into medical history, and employing a variety of specialized tests. Although its symptoms may change over time, cerebral palsy by definition is not progressive, so if a patient shows increased impairment, the problem may be something other than cerebral palsy.

Between 500,000 - 700,000 Americans have some degree of cerebral palsy. About 3,000 babies are born with the disorder each year, and another 500 or so acquire it in the early years of life.