The medical community officially recognizes four distinct types of cerebral palsy:
- Spastic Cerebral Palsy. This is the most common type. This type of CP most often affects the muscles, making them either too loose, too tight, or difficult to control.
- Dyskinetic (pronounced dis-ki-NET-ik) cerebral palsy. This type of CP involves slow and uncontrollable jerky movements of the hands, feet, arms, or legs. People with this form of cerebral palsy may have trouble sitting or walking but usually don’t exhibit intellectual problems.
- Ataxic (pronounced a-TAK-sik) cerebral palsy. This form of the disorder affects balance and depth perception. People with ataxic cerebral palsy walk in an unsteady manner and have a hard time with quick or precise movements such as writing, buttoning a shirt, or reaching for a book.
- Mixed cerebral palsy. There are some who suffer from some mix of two or more of the - symptoms from the various types of CP. Therefore, it is possible for someone to fit into more than one of the above groups.