Disabilities Associated with Cerebral Palsy 

Children with cerebral palsy can exhibit a wide variety of disabilities related to the brain damage that causes CP. Disabilities can be mild, moderate, or severe, and can affect people with CP of all ages. While certain disabilities make it difficult for some parents to envision a happy future for their children, it’s important to remember that there are a wide variety of treatments and therapies, resources, and technologies that can vastly improve the lives of children with cerebral palsy.  

Disabilities associated with cerebral palsy include the following: 

• Difficulty with muscle control and coordination. Because kids with CP have actually suffered brain damage to the part of the brain that affects motor skills, disabilities with both fine and gross motor skills are prevalent. Gait disturbances, inability to sit, stand, or walk, spasms and twitching, and difficulty grasping and letting go of objects are common.

• Drooling. When cerebral palsy affects the muscles in the face, mouth, and tongue, drooling can become an issue.

• Speech disabilities. Again, the inability to properly control the muscles in the face, mouth, and tongue can cause problems with speech, including slurring and other speech impediments.

• Impairment of other sense, such as sight and hearing. From half to three-quarters of all children with cerebral palsy experience vision problems, while 20 percent of kids with CP have hearing issues.

• Incontinence. Poor bladder control can cause incontinence in the form of bed wetting, leaking, and urination during activities that cause exertion such as athletic activities, sneezing, coughing, and laughing.

• Learning disabilities. Learning disabilities can range from mild to severe. Some kids with CP may require only extra help in mainstream classrooms, while those with severe mental retardation may require special situations and services.

• Seizures. About half of all kids with cerebral palsy also experience seizures. These seizures are the result of abnormal brain activity. Some children will have severe seizures, while others will have only mild seizures. Regardless of the severity of the seizures, most of them are not dangerous and pass within a few minutes.