What is the most common type of cerebral palsy?

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Multiple Choice

What is the most common type of cerebral palsy?

Spastic cerebral palsy is the most common form. It results from injury to the motor pathways, typically the motor cortex or corticospinal tract, around birth. This leads to increased muscle tone that is velocity-dependent, along with hyperactive reflexes. Clinically, you’ll see stiff, tight muscles and movement patterns such as leg scissoring or toe walking, and it can present as hemiplegia, diplegia, or quadriplegia depending on which areas are affected. The other types—athetoid (or dyskinetic), which has involuntary writhing movements; ataxic, with unsteady balance and coordination; and mixed forms—are less common. Therefore, the most common type is spastic CP.

Spastic cerebral palsy is the most common form. It results from injury to the motor pathways, typically the motor cortex or corticospinal tract, around birth. This leads to increased muscle tone that is velocity-dependent, along with hyperactive reflexes. Clinically, you’ll see stiff, tight muscles and movement patterns such as leg scissoring or toe walking, and it can present as hemiplegia, diplegia, or quadriplegia depending on which areas are affected. The other types—athetoid (or dyskinetic), which has involuntary writhing movements; ataxic, with unsteady balance and coordination; and mixed forms—are less common. Therefore, the most common type is spastic CP.

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