What it is
A short, honest summary.
- —A group of permanent disorders of movement and posture, caused by non-progressive brain injury early in life.
- —Severity ranges widely. What does not vary: early, consistent, family-integrated work changes the trajectory.
- —Goals shift with age — from milestone-chasing in infancy to function and participation in adulthood.
What families notice
The signals worth taking seriously.
- 01Delayed motor milestones — sitting, crawling, walking
- 02Persistent tightness, especially in calves and hamstrings
- 03Asymmetry in movement or hand use
- 04Speech and feeding difficulties
- 05Fatigue with movement
My approach
How the work is structured.
- —Family-centred goal-setting — what does your child want to do?
- —Play-based therapy that integrates with daily routines.
- —Caregiver training so therapy continues between sessions.
- —Long-term partnership with paediatric neurologists and orthopaedic surgeons.
What recovery looks like
A plain-language picture.
“CP is lifelong, but function is not fixed. With early, consistent work, the gap between expectation and ability narrows year by year.”
FAQ
Common questions, answered briefly.
- When should CP therapy begin?
- As soon as there is any concern — even without a formal diagnosis. The brain's capacity for plasticity is highest in the first two years.
- Will my child walk?
- Many children with CP do walk. For those who don't, mobility takes other meaningful forms.
For clinicians
Clinical detail, assessment and evidence.
Clinical summary
The picture in clinician register.
Cerebral palsy is a group of permanent movement and posture disorders from a non-progressive lesion of the developing brain; the lesion is static but the musculoskeletal picture evolves with growth. The GMFCS level guides realistic goal-setting. Early, family-integrated, goal-directed practice and contracture and hip surveillance change the functional trajectory.
Terminology
Terms worth being precise about.
- GMFCS
- Gross Motor Function Classification System — a 5-level functional classification guiding goals.
- Spasticity vs dyskinesia
- The dominant motor type shapes the management approach.
- Hip surveillance
- Scheduled monitoring for hip migration, which is silent until advanced.
- Selective motor control
- The ability to move joints in isolation; often a key limitation.
Assessment & measures
What the first sessions measure.
- —GMFCS level; GMFM (Gross Motor Function Measure).
- —Goniometry and the spasticity examination.
- —Gait analysis where ambulant; hip-surveillance imaging coordinated with orthopaedics.
Red flags
Signs that need urgent escalation.
- Rapid loss of a previously held skill — the cerebral-palsy lesion is static, so regression must be investigated.
- Hip migration on surveillance imaging.
- Progressive scoliosis.
Referral & MDT
When and to whom to refer.
Paediatric neurology. Orthopaedics for hip surveillance and contracture; tone management (botulinum toxin, baclofen) in selected cases; speech-and-language therapy, occupational therapy and orthotics.
Evidence
References and guideline anchors.
- Goal-directed, family-centred CP intervention — PLACEHOLDER — verify against current guidelines before launch.