Cerebral Palsy Symptoms
Cerebral palsy may be mild or severe, depending on the part of the brain and the size of the area affected, as well as the parts of the body controlled by that area of the brain. The physical signs of cerebral palsy are often evident to parents and health care providers early on in a child's life. However, occasionally symptoms will not manifest themselves until later in a child’s development.
Signs that you may observe in the delivery room, or shortly after birth, that may suggest possible cerebral palsy include:
- Hypotonic; infant has a floppy appearance, indicating lack of muscle tone
- Torticollis; infant has poor control of head position
- The infant is dusky, or blue in color
- The infant fails to breathe immediately following delivery
- The infant requires some type of resuscitation at delivery
- Seizures that develop shortly after delivery
Signs of Cerebral Palsy that may appear over time include:
- Not reaching developmental milestones on time (sitting up, crawling, walking, talking, etc.)
- Inability or difficulty walking
- Hypertonic, or "tight" muscles in arms and/or legs
- Hypotonic, or "floppy" muscles
- Dystonia, chorea, or tremors
- Lack of coordination
- Dysarthria or other difficulties with speech
- Difficulty swallowing or feeding
Cerebral palsy can also cause some children to have severe cognitive impairment, while others who have the disorder have little or no cognitive impairment.
Learn about the causes of cerebral palsy.
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