Cerebral Palsy is often referred to as CP. Damage to the muscles or nerves does not cause cerebral palsy, but damage to the motor area or improper development in the brain does. Development of the brain starts during pregnancy and continues till the age of three. When the brain is damaged or hurt during pregnancy, during birth or after birth of the baby, then cerebral palsy may result. We all know that the brain controls all our actions and hence the movements of the muscles.

If the brain is injured or not properly developed, the messages which allow the child to walk, talk, stand, and sit are not properly conveyed and the child experiences difficulty in movement. Hence, the conditions could range from very slight awkwardness in movement or muscle control to total loss of muscle control. The muscles that are affected could be confined to one side of the body or the entire body. Muscles become stiff (spasticity) and reflex movements are absolutely uncontrolled. Unfortunately, the damage is permanent. There is no cure as such for cerebral palsy but Therapy and training can help the child to lead a better life.

It is not a disease in the strict sense of the word and hence is not contagious or hereditary in nature. Although C.P. is a non-progressive condition ---that is the damage to the brain does not worsen with the passage of time, the effects of cerebral palsy may change. Body movement and muscle coordination may deteriorate with the aging process or in some cases the condition may actually improve.

Cerebral Palsy need not necessarily incapacitate the child entirely. Since the learning and thinking centers are controlled by a different part of the brain, loss of motor control is not necessarily accompanied by a loss in thinking or the ability to learn. In fact many children with cerebral palsy have average intelligence.

Depending on which areas of the brain have been damaged, the child will encounter muscle spasms, involuntary movement, difficulty with walking and running (gross motor skills), difficulty with writing (fine motor skills) or experience difficulty in perception and sensation and may have difficulty even in swallowing.

Unfortunately the effects of cerebral palsy may bring along with it other associated problems which may lead to difficulties in feeding, developmental delay and seizures which are more difficult to handle. Spastic hemiplegia is said to occur when one side is affected---either the right or left side. In spastic quadriplegia all four limbs are affected and in paraplegia only the legs are affected.

Children with cerebral palsy need special education from special schools, which focus on speech therapy, improvement of motor skills, and more importantly cater to their individual needs because no two children suffering from CP are alike.