Every mother hopes and preys that the child they have been carrying is going to grow up and become strong and healthy. There is a small factor that the child is going to have a problem which is every mother’s worst nightmare. The most common disorder a baby or child is going to have is Cerebral Palsy. Many have seen these children and hardly anyone knows what is wrong with them, alike many others that have wondered what is Cerebral Palsy and how does a child live with such a condition? Cerebral Palsy or CP for short is a term that refers to any one of a neurological disorders that permanently affect the body movement and muscle coordination in infancy and children(NINDS, 2014). In developing nations every 3.6 out of 1,000 live births have cerebral palsy (Ittner, 2014). CP can occur before, during or after birth in children up to the age of 2 (Ittner, 2014). CP development conditions include underlying structural abnormalities of the brain, early prenatal, perinatal or postnatal vascular deficiency; toxins or infections; or the pathophysiologic factors of prematurity (Ittner, 2014). A small number of children have CP as a result of brain damage in the first few months or years of life, brain infections such as bacterial meningitis or viral encephalitis, or head injury from a motor vehicle accident, a fall, or child abuse (Ittner, 2014).
Children with CP have various physical impairments including weak muscle tone, abnormal postural control, balance difficulties, gross motor limitations, and spastic paresis (Ittner, 2014). CP has no cure but with treatments it can improve a child’s capabilities, the earlier the treatment is started the better chance a child is going to have of overcoming developmental disabilities (NINDS, 2014). CP doesn’t always cause profound disabilities while one child with more severe CP may not be able to walk and need lifelong care, another might not require special assistance (NINDS, 2014). There are many different types of CP but the most common is Spastic paresis which greatly contributes to functional impairment (Ittner, 2014).
CP can go unnoticeable until the child comes to the milestone when he or she is suppose to be able to sit up alone with no support or when they are suppose do certain things a normal infant can do but is unable too. The doctor can order lab testing such as CBC which will show leukocytosis in patients with infection or GI obstruction, serial serum glucose monitoring for hypoglycemia for patients with feeding difficulties, serum bilirubin in newborns to monitor for elevated levels and jaundice, also a genetic study may be performed (Ittner, 2014). Other studies such as MRIs and CTs of the brain will help identify the site of damage, EEG monitoring will identify seizure activity and patterns, visual