Glossary of Terms

Cerebral palsy – Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture. CP is the most common motor disability in childhood. Cerebral means having to do with the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles. CP is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that affects a person’s ability to control his or her muscles. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Early intervention – the term used to describe the services and supports that are available to babies and young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families. May include speech therapy, physical therapy, and other types of services based on the needs of the child and family. These publicly funded programs provide services for free or at reduced cost for any child who is eligible. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Developmental delay – “Child with a disability for children aged three through nine (or any subset of that age range, including ages three through five), may…include a child (1)Who is experiencing developmental delays as defined by the State and as measured by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures in one or more of the following areas: Physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development; and (2) Who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services. [IDEA 34 CFR §300.8(b)] It’s a good idea to find out if your state has added details to this definition of developmental delay. States are allowed to do so, if they choose. They also decide on the age range of children with whom the term may be used (3-5, 3-9, or any subset between 3-9). Your local school or early intervention program should be able to tell you the definition of developmental delay that’s used in your area (Center for Parent Intervention and Resources) 

Physical therapy – Physical therapists are movement experts who improve quality of life through prescribed exercise, hands-on care, and patient education. Physical therapists examine each person and then develop a treatment plan to improve their ability to move, reduce or manage pain, restore function, and prevent disability. (APTA)

Occupational therapy – Occupational therapists help people participate in their desired occupations with the therapeutic use of everyday activities, based on the client’s personal interests and needs. Occupational therapy (OT) considers the complex relationship between the client, the activity, and the environment in which the activity takes place. Examples of OT interventions include: helping a child with a disability to participate fully in school and social situations, assisting an injured worker to regain skills they need to function in their job, or providing supports to older adults experiencing cognitive or physical changes. (AOTA)

Speech Language Pathology – Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) work to prevent, assess, diagnose, and treat speech, language, social communication, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in children and adults. People under the care of SLP’s may have difficulty producing speech sounds, problems with his or her voice, trouble understanding others or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings, problems communicating for social purposes, problems organizing thoughts, paying attention, remembering, planning, and/or problem-solving or feeding and swallowing difficulties (ASHA)

Hypotonia – Hypotonia is a term that describes decreased muscle tone. Typically, muscles have a very small amount of contraction that gives them a springy feel even when relaxed.  This also provides some resistance to passive movement. It is not the same as muscle weakness, although the two conditions can happen at the same time. (NIH NINDS)

Hypertonia – Hypertonia is a condition in which there is too much muscle tone. For instance, arms or legs are stiff and hard to move. Muscle tone is controlled by signals that travel from the brain to the nerves and tell the muscle to contract. Hypertonia happens when the regions of the brain or spinal cord that control these signals are damaged. (NIH NINDS)

Spasticity – Spasticity is a condition in which there is an abnormal increase in muscle tone or stiffness of muscle, which might interfere with movement, speech, or be associated with discomfort or pain.  Spasticity is usually caused by damage to nerve pathways within the brain or spinal cord that control muscle movement. (NIH NINDS)

MRI – Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive imaging technology that produces three dimensional detailed anatomical images. It is often used for disease detection, diagnosis, and treatment monitoring. It is based on sophisticated technology that excites and detects the change in the direction of the rotational axis of protons found in the water that makes up living tissues. (NIH NIBIB)

Adjusted/corrected age– “If your baby was born early, you have 2 important days to mark on the calendar: the day your baby was born and your estimated due date. When you measure your baby’s development—that is, when you look at what is “normal” for your baby’s age—consider both of those dates. By looking at the difference between them, you can adjust your baby’s calendar age to account for prematurity and calculate his or her corrected age. During the first 2 years, using your baby’s corrected age will give you a better idea when he or she should reach common developmental goals. Calculating corrected age isn’t difficult. Here’s how: Begin with your baby’s actual age in weeks (number of weeks since the date of birth) and then subtract the number of weeks your baby was preterm. This is your baby’s corrected age. (A pregnancy is now considered “full term” at 39 weeks.) To determine the number of weeks’ preterm your baby was at birth, subtract gestational age at birth from 40.” (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Asymmetry – Asymmetry can be defined by the presentation of the body either not appearing to be identical on the left and right side, or an imbalance between the body halves

High risk of cerebral palsy – a baby with a higher likelihood of receiving a cerebral palsy diagnosis due to risk factors. Some examples of these risk factors are: being born prematurely (before the 37th week of pregnancy); having a low birthweight; being part of a multiple birth, such as a twin or triplet