Cerebral palsy is a neurological development disorder that affects a person's motor abilities. The condition can originate from birth or might be the result of a head injury or brain infection suffered before the age of 2. Children who have cerebral palsy can experience a range of symptoms, from mild to severe. Each child will have a different experience with the condition and will require individualized care and rehabilitation in order to reach their full potential.
Hand Preference
Your toddler may have struggles with her fine-motor skills and exhibit a handedness earlier than anticipated. Developmental levels are usually achieved within a range of "normal," and the normal time for a child to exhibit a preference of one hand over the other is around 2 years of age. According to Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare, the development of a hand preference before 12 months indicates that there is a motor impairment in the opposite hand. A child will reach for toys, point or eat using one hand consistently. The hand that has a motor impairment may also be fisted, which is normal only in children who are 3 months and younger.
Fine-Motor Skills
Fine-motor skills include handling scissors, picking up pencils or crayons and manipulating them, buttoning a shirt or closing a Velcro shoe strap. Each of these movements requires the use of the smaller muscles in the hand, as opposed to picking up a ball or larger toy, which uses more of the larger muscles in the arms. According to 4 My Child, parents may suspect their 2-year-old has some motor delays before the pediatrician. Struggles to learn fine-motor skills may be one of the indicators of cerebral palsy that you recognize in your child.
Gross-Motor Skills
Gross-motor skills are those skills required to balance, stand, walk and sit. They require a coordinated muscular effort in the core abdominal and back muscles as well as the large muscles of the arms and legs. According to the University of Pittsburgh, children who have high amounts of underlying tone in their large muscle groups and spasticity have some of the early symptoms of cerebral palsy. This tone and tight muscles can cause difficulty with diapering or result in the child keeping his legs in an extended position, with the ankles or legs crossed. This is called scissoring. Children who have impaired gross-motor skills will bring their legs to the chest together, instead of alternating the legs or a bicycle-style of kicking common among children who don't have problems with motor impairment.
Development
Children who have difficulty with motor impairment will have delayed motor development. This means your child may have trouble reaching motor milestones, such as sitting up, reaching for toys or feeding herself, or may exhibit body tremors, drooling, weakness or trouble moving from one position to another. According to 4 My Child, these symptoms of poor physical development are an indication that your child should be seen by a physician who is familiar with the diagnosis of cerebral palsy. Your child's specialist will be able to both diagnose and recommend individualized treatment plans so your child reaches his fullest potential.
