title: The cerebral palsy patient.
abstract: CP is not a disease but rather a descriptive term that identifies a heterogeneous group of children who manifest primarily chronic motor impairment. It should be appreciated that the large group of children identified under this heading have a broad range of associated handicaps. It is also important to recognize that there is an extremely wide range of variability in terms of the degree of impairment each child may exhibit. Therefore, appropriate management strategies and family counseling must be individualized. The importance of communicating with families cannot be overstressed. The management of children will require expertise in many fields. A multidisciplinary approach is therefore preferable for the comprehensive management of children with CP. If a specialized multidisciplinary clinic setting is not available, an "integrated effort coordinator," the primary physician, is essential to optimize care of the child with CP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington.
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: DiMario
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Sladky
mesh_terms: D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000266:history / Q000628:therapy; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D009128:Muscle Spasticity / Q000628:therapy; D011379:Prognosis