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  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    How is cerebral palsy diagnosed?

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  • Amanda2012

    HealthShare Member

    My daughter  has severe Autism / developmental delay. she was late to walk and now she has what we and others call a "daggy walk where she will kind of drag her feet into the centre when she walks.
    I recently had a visit to a specialist school where she will attend next year and the assistant principal asked does she have cerebal palsy? i replied no. This has always stuck with me and would like some advice to wheather i should take this query to her paeditrician?

  • jeddsmum

    HealthShare Member

    Amanda2012 , my son was diagnosed with ataxic CP at about 11months of age and so as the years went on different people who met Jedd would often say , does he have autism or how old was he when diagnosed with autism ( all people who have experience with disabilities ie teachers , aids etc ) and i would always say he doesnt have it , he has ataxic CP , but i bought it to our paed's attention many many times over a 6 - 7 yr period only to have her brush my concerns away with quite hurtful comments like , why does it matter ? you have a diagnosis , it doesnt change anything , its just a label.. curiosity got the better of me eventually and i researched autism myself on the internet , talked to other professional's in jedds life and was convinced myself totally that yes he also had autism. our paed finally took notice at my son's 13 yr old yearly check up , after seeing him with his collection of coins and cards that he posts over & over from one container to another container and she really took notice after she asked him to sit at the table with his sister and draw , which he did eventually but the furtherest away from his sister he could get and then having a meltdown after the paed touched his container of coins & cards ….. she immediately did the relevant procedures / checkpoints etc and at 13yrs old we finally do have a classic autism diagnosis and it explains so so much to me his mum , his teachers , it helps me understand him , deal with certain behaviours etc etc and if your daughter does have CP too and you get a professional diagnosis then you will be able to get the appropriate treatment or therapist's involved to best suit your daughters condition !!  good luck to both of you 

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