Cerebral palsy (CP) is caused by brain damage that occurs prior to, during, or shortly after the birth of a child. CP is actually an umbrella term that describes many disorders associated with this, but children with most forms of CP have problems with muscle tone, balance and motor skills. It is impossible to be certain of a CP diagnosis in infancy, but there are several symptoms that parents can often identify early on.
Overly Rigid or Floppy Muscle Tone
The most common symptom associated with cerebral palsy during infancy is a problem with normal muscle tone. If a child has hypotonia, she will have overly relaxed or floppy muscles. If a child has hypertonia, he will have overly tense and rigid muscles. Either or both of these symptoms can be present during infancy for a child with CP. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, children with CP will often switch from hypotonia to hypertonia when they are approximately two or three months of age.
Delayed Developmental Milestone Achievement
As babies develop, they acquire new motor skills. For instance, most children smile by six weeks of age, roll over around four months, sit independently about five months and crawl by seven months of age. Children with CP typically achieve these milestones several months later than their non-CP peers. It should be said, however, that there are several reasons for such a delay other than CP. Perhaps the most common cause of motor development delays is the simple fact that different babies develop at different rates. According to the Merck Medical Manual, CP affects only two to four out of every 1,000 children born in the United States. It is therefore more likely for a developmental delay to be associated with something other than CP. If, however, a child exhibits more than a month of delay for several of these milestones, parents may wish to consult a physician.
Favoring One Side While Crawling
One common type of CP is known as spastic hemiplegia. It affects only one side of the body. Children with this type of CP will crawl later than seven months, and when they do, they will typically favor one side, avoiding the use of the affected arm and leg.
Fine Motor Difficulties
Children with CP tend to have great difficulty with tasks that involve small, precise movements of the body, such as picking up a small object with the fingertips. For some children, the difficulty will be restricted to tasks performed with one arm and hand. For others, the problem may exist on both sides.
Facial Spasms and Drooling
Children with certain types of CP periodically make a characteristic grimace expression as the muscles of the face undergo an uncontrollable spasm. Controlling the muscles of the face in general can be problematic for children with CP. Difficulties with controlling the lips and tongue can result in excessive drooling. All infants drool, however, so this is not a definitive symptom in itself.
Seizures
Certain types of CP result in seizures. The frequency and duration of the seizures can vary tremendously from child to child. It is also important to consider that, as with developmental milestone delays, seizures can be caused by many problems other than CP. But seizures are an early symptom associated with CP in babies.
Childbirth Complications
In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, it was believed that all CP was caused by problems during childbirth. And it is true that extended periods of asphyxia during the baby's passage through the birth canal can cause CP. However, according to the Merck Medical Manual, it is now known that birth trauma causes fewer than 20 percent of CP cases. The brain damage associated with CP can be caused by many things that occur prior to birth---genetic mutations, maternal infections and bleeding. That said, even if the brain damage occurs prior to childbirth, it can still lead to difficulties during the birthing process. For this reason, complications during childbirth are a sign of CP.
Physical Trauma in Early Infancy
Adults should never shake a baby, for any reason, because it can cause damage to the developing brain. In some cases, this damage will lead to the death of the infant. In rare cases, it will cause CP. In general, if a child has suffered physical trauma as a baby, it is an indicator of the potential for CP.
