Cerebral Palsy Treatment

Physical therapy is important for almost all children with cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy can cause a variety of physical conditions, including tight or floppy muscles, restrictions on joint movements, and muscle tremors. Physical therapy helps people with CP to address these issues and develop their motor skills.

Physical therapy primarily focuses on developing gross motor skills. The therapy aims to improve endurance, balance the strength of various muscle groups, and improve range of motion. By working on their gross motor skills, people with CP become better able to perform certain tasks independently, including:

• Walking
• Using a wheelchair
• Moving from a wheelchair to a bath, toilet, vehicle, or other location

Physical therapists can also assist in finding the correct medical devices and equipment to address physical mobility issues.

Occupational therapy focuses on giving people with cerebral palsy independence by modifying the normal daily tasks that they need to complete. For example, someone who is wheelchair-bound may need a tool to help them reach a doorknob and open a door; an occupational therapist can teach them how to use this kind of tool.

The goals of occupational therapy include learning to perform self-care tasks, adjusting to the use of adaptive tools and mobility aids, communicating with others, participating in school or school-related activities, and managing emotional and sensory needs.

Some of the things that children will do during a cerebral palsy occupational therapy session include:

• Flipping the pages of a book to work on fine motor skills
• Using silverware to get used to picking up forks, knives, and spoons
• Painting, drawing, and coloring
• Turning door knobs
• Participating in sensory activities
• Playing with playdough
• Using a keyboard
• Writing
• Using a key in a lock

Unlike physical therapy, the tasks in occupational therapy directly relate to real-world tasks. The activities are meant to be practical and have immediate real-world applications so children may become more independent.

While not all people with cerebral palsy have trouble with oral communication, it is possible that a person with cerebral palsy could have trouble communicating due to issues with the facial, neck, and throat muscles. These muscles are used for important functions like swallowing, chewing, and talking.

Speech and language therapy can help children and adults with cerebral palsy learn to communicate more effectively with others. Speech therapy improves a child’s potential for independence in the future and may positively impact their life overall.

In speech and language therapy, licensed speech therapists work with children to treat speech, language, and communication disorders. They use exercises that train the brain to understand, interpret, and pronounce words, gestures, sounds, and numbers. They also focus on improving the functionality of the mouth, throat, and jaw muscles. Improper function of these muscles can cause issues with speaking, swallowing, and even breathing.

Some of the common conditions that speech therapists deal with include:

• Aphasia: the partial loss of the ability to express oneself verbally
• Prosodic issues: includes problems with speech rhythm and intonation
• Dysphagia: includes trouble swallowing, breathing issues, and choking
• Dysprosody: an interruption in the cadence and timing of speech
• Dyspraxia: when a child can understand language but has trouble with consistent pronunciation due to issues with muscle coordination
• Phonation disorders: causes problems with pitch
• Resonance disorders: vocal tract problems
• Stuttering or fluency disorders (includes repetition or chronic interruption of speech)
• Articulation disorders (includes omitting the required sounds to make words)

Some speech therapists believe that being able to communicate well with others also helps children with cerebral palsy minimize their risk of depression.

Recreational therapy uses fun activities to improve motor function in people with CP. This modality is highly individualized, and focuses on helping those with CP to take part in any activity that they enjoy. In effect, this serves the function of physical, occupational, and speech therapy, while also helping people with CP to improve their outlook, mood, and quality of life by doing things that they find fun.

One example is hippotherapy, in which people with CP engage in horseback riding. Studies have shown that this therapy is effective for treating muscle asymmetry of the hip and trunk. Riding horses also helps to improve gross motor function, and has even been shown to have more benefits in this regard than a typical physical therapy session.