Definition of the word cerebral palsy

The term "cerebral palsy" was coined by the British pediatrician Sir William Little in 1861. Little noticed that a large number of infants born with head injuries or suffering from oxygen deprivation during birth developed a set of symptoms that consisted of involuntary movements, muscle stiffness, and coordination problems. He identified the affected area in the brain as the cerebral cortex, which led him to name the condition cerebral palsy. The word "palsy" comes from the older medical term meaning "paralysis," but in this case, it refers to a lack of control over muscle movements rather than total paralysis. Little's diagnosis and classification of cerebral palsy was groundbreaking for its time, and it continues to be an important medical term today, helping to describe a spectrum of neurological disorders that primarily affect movement and muscle tone.