Thursday, January 12, 2012

Cerebral Palsy and the Speech and Language Pathologist

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a chronic condition affecting body movements and muscle coordination.  It is caused by damage to one or more specific areas of the brain, usually occurring during fetal development or infancy.  It also can occur before, during or shortly following birth.


"Cerebral" refers to the brain and "Palsy" to a disorder of movement or posture.  If someone has CP it means that because of an injury to their brain they are not able to use some of the muscles in their body in the normal way.  Most children with CP are likely to have speech and hearing impairments accompanied by involuntary body or facial movements (that look like a tick), disturbed gait (walking pattern), and or seizures. 

As a parent/caregiver/sibling it is important to be aware of effective means by which to communicate with someone with CP and even more important to educate unfamiliar communication partners on CP in general and best communication practices in specific.  The follwing are some helpful tips:
  • look directly at them when speaking
  • have moderate to slow rate of speech
  • if they have a hearing impairment, be sure to be in close proximity when speaking to them
  • move your lips when talking to them so they can speech read (do not speak under your breath)
  • allow for a longer response time and expect that they may have slow, labored, halting speech output
In cases of cerebral palsy where speech is severely impacted, a speech therapist can introduce alternative augmentative communication (AAC) devices.  These devices can range from high tech voice output devices with eye tracking abilities to low tech boards with photos and letter or words.  Other methodologies to enhance communication can include sign and body language training, and respiratory strength training.  

Remember, that just as every non-CP individual is different and unique in their own way, so is each and every individual with CP; one script does not fit all.  Engage with your child's speech therapist and seek out her advice on the best course of action for your child.  She will be able to ascertain the best course of therapy given your family's needs, his particular motor, visual, auditory, cognitive, language and communication strengths and weaknesses.   

Until next time, 
Salima Dhamani M.S., CCC-SLP       



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