“Little suggested their condition resulted from a lack of oxygen during birth since they were mostly born premature or had difficult deliveries. This oxygen shortage damaged sensitive brain tissues controlling movement, he proposed(Kuban, 1994, p.188).” But in 1897, the famous psychiatrist Sigmund Freud disagreed. “Noting that children with cerebral palsy often had other problems such as mental retardation, visual disturbances, and seizures, Freud suggested that the disorder might sometimes have roots earlier in life, during the brain's development in the womb. ‘Difficult birth, in certain cases,’ he wrote, ‘is merely a symptom of deeper effects that influence the development of the fetus’(Batshaw, 1997, p. 39).”

“Congenital cerebral palsy, on the other hand, is present at birth, although it may not be detected for months. In most cases, the cause of congenital cerebral palsy is unknown(http://www.ucpa.org/).” Thanks to research, however, scientists have pinpointed some specific events during pregnancy or around the time of birth that can damage motor centers in the developing brain. “Some of these causes of congenital cerebral palsy include:

“Low muscle tone and poor coordination of movements is described as ataxic cerebral palsy. Kids with ataxic cerebral palsy look very unsteady and shaky. They have alot of shakiness, like a tremor you might have seen in a very old person, especially when they are trying to do something like write or turn a page or cut with scissors(p.21).” They also often have very poor balance and may be very unsteady when they walk. Because of the shaky movements and problems coordinating their muscles, kids with ataxic cerebral palsy may take longer to finish writing.

· Infections during pregnancy. German measles, or rubella, is caused by a virus that can infect pregnant women and, therefore, the fetus in the uterus, to cause damage to the developing nervous system.

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