Cerebral Palsy Glossary - Related Health Terms

Acquired Cerebral Palsy - In some cases cerebral palsy may be acquired in the months following birth. Acquired cerebral palsy may be the result of a brain infection or head injury.

Apgar Score - When a child is born, a physician will take note of his or her activity - muscle tone, pulse, grimace, reflex irritability, appearance, skin color, and respiration. These observations are made once immediately following birth and once five minutes later. A score of zero to ten is then calculated. A low score alerts a doctor that resuscitation may be necessary and a high score reassures a doctor that the baby is healthy. Children with cerebral palsy often receive low apgar scores.

Ataxic Cerebral Palsy - Ataxic cerebral palsy is characterized by a weakness in the muscles and wobbly, shaky movements. People who have ataxic cerebral palsy will often have a difficult time balancing and will exhibit poor depth perception.

Athetoid Cerebral Palsy - A form of cerebral palsy in which the patient has difficulty controlling movement. Athetoid cerebral palsy patients may move involuntarily and will often squirm and twist when they feel emotional distress.

Baclofen - A medication used to reduce spasticity.

Brain Damage - During pregnancy or birth, brain damage to a child may cause cerebral palsy. The following problems may result in brain damage: Rh incompatibility, a lack of oxygen to the baby, a mother's urinary tract infection, bleeding within the infant's brain, or poisoning due to the mothers use of alcohol or drugs.

Central Nervous System - The brain and the spinal cord. Receives sensory impulses from the rest of the nervous system and then controls the body's response to those impulses.

Cerebral Palsy - A general term for a group of permanent brain injuries that affect an infant in the womb, during birth, or in the months following birth. Cerebral palsy patients may have limited motor skills, speech difficulties, learning disabilities, or other problems.

Chorea - Uncontrollable, small, jerky types of movements of toes and fingers.

Cognitive Functions - The skills of the brain - memory, attention, and concentration.

Congenital Cerebral Palsy - A form of cerebral palsy resulting from birth injury or brain damage during pregnancy. Common causes of congenital cerebral palsy include lack of oxygen to the baby's brain, Rh incompatibility, bleeding in the baby's brain, and exposure to drugs and alcohol in the womb.

CT Scan - A computed tomography scan may be used to determine the cause of cerebral palsy in a child. This test scans the brain, looking for abnormalities and areas that have not properly developed.

Dysarthria - A speech disorder that often affects people with cerebral palsy, caused by a weakness in the muscles that produce speech. In mild cases, there may only be a slight slurring of speech; in more severe cases, the person may depend upon a voice output system to speak.

Dystonia - Involuntary slow, sustained muscle contractions resulting in abnormal postures and twisting motions of arms, legs, and trunk.

Gait - How an individual walks. Normal gait requires the proper functioning of the nervous system and the musculoskeletal system.

Hemiplegia - One side of the body affected. Arm and leg may be equally or unequally affected.

Hypertonia - Increased postural tone; stiffness of muscles.

Intention Tremors - As a person with ataxic cerebral palsy reaches for an object or attempts to perform an act (such as putting on a shoe), the body part that he or she is moving may begin to tremble. Intention tremors become stronger as the person reaches the object.

Involuntary Movement - Movement that is not under the control of the brain. The movement is caused by electrical stimulation of the muscle, and in individuals with cerebral palsy, the involuntary movement happens so often that it interferes with their ability to function.

Mixed Cerebral Palsy - About 20 percent of those with cerebral palsy show some mix between spastic, ataxic, and athetoid cerebral palsy.

Muscle Tone - Defines the condition of the muscles. Muscles that are affected by cerebral palsy will be either floppy and loose or stiff and rigid. Poor muscle tone limits movement.

Occupational Therapy - Therapy designed to enable the individual to work with their arms and hands.

Physical Therapy - Therapy designed to improve mobility and keep muscles stretched.

RH Incompatibility - Results when the blood type of the fetus, or developing child, differs from the blood type of the mother.

Rhizotomy - A surgical procedure to decrease spasticity.

Seizures - A person having a seizure may abruptly freeze, fall and shake violently or simply fall down. Seizures affect about half of all people with cerebral palsy but are usually not harmful.

Spastic Cerebral Palsy - A form of cerebral palsy that causes tightness in the muscles. Because of this tightness, spastic cerebral palsy patients have a difficult time controlling their movement.

Spastic Diplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects muscle control in either arms or legs.

Spastic Hemiplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects muscle control on one side of the body.

Spastic Cerebral Palsy - A form of cerebral palsy that causes tightness in the muscles. Because of this tightness, spastic cerebral palsy patients have a difficult time controlling their movement. Their motions may be abrupt and jerky. Spastic cerebral palsy is seen (to some degree) in 80 percent of cerebral palsy cases.

Spastic Diplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects muscle control in both of the arms or legs.

Spastic Hemiplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects muscle control on one side of the body. The right arm and leg or left arm and leg will be affected.

Spastic Monoplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects only one limb. This form of spastic cerebral palsy is rare.

Spastic Quadriplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects both the arms and the legs of a patient.

Spastic Triplegia - A form of spastic cerebral palsy that affects three of the limbs. This form of spastic cerebral palsy, like spastic monoplegia, is quite rare.

Speech Therapy - Therapy used to increase communication skills. It may also include teaching sign language or using a communication device.