{"id":6171,"date":"2011-09-18T21:02:02","date_gmt":"2011-09-18T21:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/parentingtoday.com\/anew\/?page_id=6171"},"modified":"2019-07-23T16:40:30","modified_gmt":"2019-07-23T23:40:30","slug":"cerebral-palsy","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/childdevelopmentinfo.com\/child-teen-health\/diseases-conditions\/cerebral-palsy\/","title":{"rendered":"Cerebral Palsy 101"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every parent hopes that their child will live a long, healthy life. Unfortunately that isn’t always the case. Some children are born with Cerebral Palsy (CP), a number of disorders affecting the brain as it develops. If you\u00edre unfamiliar with this condition, read on to find out more. \u00a0 Cerebral Palsy is caused by damage to one or more areas of the brain. Quite often the damage occurs while the child is still in the womb, during the birth process, or shortly afterward. It can also be caused by brain tumors or meningitis. It nearly always includes some type of motor impairment but can also develop into mental retardation in severe cases. \u00a0 How widespread is this condition? By 2001 there was an estimate of 764,000 children and adults in the United States alone; estimates are not known for the rest of the world. It is estimated nearly 10,000 more babies to pre-school age children are diagnosed each year in America. \u00a0 Cerebral Palsy falls into one of three main types: Ataxic CP, Athetoid CP, and Spastic CP. Some children or adults will have only one type of CP, while some will have a combination of two and others will have a combination of all three.<\/p>\n