What's Up Doc: Cerebral palsy affects 3 per 1,000

Q: What exactly is cerebral palsy?

A: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a general term that describes disorders of movement, muscle tone, gait and/or posture that are caused by a primary brain dysfunction prior to age three. CP is a non-progressive condition; the brain dysfunction does not typically get worse over time. It is the most common motor disability in young kids, affecting about 3 per 1000.

The development of the human brain and nervous system begins just a couple of weeks after conception and continues for years after birth. CP can be caused by anything that causes the brain to develop abnormally; it is classified by the symptoms and limbs affected:

- Spastic CP, accounting for over three quarters of cases of CP, manifests with stiff, tight, rigid and/or poorly stretchable muscles. It is called spastic hemiplegia if it affects one side of the body, spastic diplegia (paraplegia) if the legs are affected more than the arms, and spastic quadriplegia if all four limbs are affected.

- Dyskinetic CP is manifested by abnormal body movements.

- Ataxic CP is when walking coordination (gait) is abnormal.

- Mixed CP is a mixture of any of these.

The symptoms from CP range from mild to moderate to severe (for example, up to 25 percent of CP patients cannot walk on their own).

There are many other symptoms CP patients may have.

- If swallowing or sucking is affected the baby may drool more than normal, and if severe they may not be able to get adequate nutrition.

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What's Up Doc: Cerebral palsy affects 3 per 1,000