Effects on Children

The main effect of cp is difficulty in movement. Many people with cp are hardly affected, others have problems walking, feeding, talking or using their hands. Some people are unable to sit up without support and need constant enabling.

Sometimes other parts of the brain are also affected, resulting in sight, hearing, perception and learning difficulties. Between a quarter and a third of children and adolescents, and about a tenth of adults, are also affected by epilepsy.

People with cp often have difficulty controlling their movement and facial expressions. This does not necessarily mean that their mental abilities are in any way impaired. Some are of higher than average intelligence, other people with cp have moderate or severe learning difficulties. Most, like most people without cp, are of average intelligence.