Cerebral palsy is the term given to a general group of nonspecific neuromuscular disorders that cause behavioral abnormalities. The condition was originally thought to be caused by asphyxia and trauma during pregnancy; however, through extensive research many divisions of cerebral palsy emerged. Such categories include spastic, athetoid, and ataxic cerebral palsy. Today over half a percent of the worlds population is subject to this condition of the brain. Two to four out of a thousand are affected in the industrialized United States; however, with the introduction of new preventive measures the numbers of cerebral palsy victims born each year are expected to decline. (Anee Stanford, General Information about Cerebral Palsy, page 1&2)Brain damage before or at birth is the leading cause of cerebral palsy. Traumatic delivery due to either, a large fetal head, a small maternal pelvis, forceps compression, and/or the partial separation of the placenta may cause this condition. Other causes include oxygen deprivation due to excessive anesthesia, delayed spontaneous respiration, or severe cardiac malformations. Another major cause of cerebral palsy are infections before birth such as toxoplasmosis, measles, mumps, cytomegalic inclusion disease, syphilis, bacterial meningitis or encephalitis, and radiation or toxic chemicals including high levels of alcohol. (Britannica.com, Cerebral Palsy, page 1)Cerebral palsy is a general name for an extensive set of disorders caused by brain damage before or shortly after the first two years of birth. The three major forms include spastic, athetoid, and ataxic cerebral palsy. It is also not uncommon for victims to suffer from mixed type cerebral palsy that has variations of two or more of the other classifications. (Grolier Encyclopedia, Cerebral Palsy, pages 1&2)Of the individuals with cerebral palsy six out of the ten will have the spastic form. Symptoms include noticeably reduced movement caused by st...
