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Cerebral Palsy - Hōkai Nukurangi The Early Years Kete | 7 TOOLKIT How does CP impact movement? Your child’s CP can often be described in medical language by the parts of the body affected and the type of movement seen. Medical terms to describe Cerebral Palsy Terms for parts of the body affected Meaning Unilateral Cerebral Palsy Monoplegia (one limb) Affecting one limb or one side of the body Hemiplegia (one side) (arm, trunk and leg) Bilateral Cerebral Palsy Diplegia (two limbs) Affecting both legs Bilateral Cerebral Palsy Triplegia (three) Affecting three or all four limbs Quadriplegia (four) Terms for type of movement Meaning Spastic or Spasticity Increased muscle tightness, stiffness, and muscle weakness Dyskinetic Changing muscle contractions causing Dystonia or Dystonic twisting or repetitive movement Athetosis or Athetoid Uncontrolled movements Ataxic Shaky movements, affecting a person’s balance and coordination Monoplegia Unilateral Bilateral Hemiplegia Diplegia Triplegia Quadriplegia The focus at the time of diagnosis is also about looking at what your child can do in everyday activities, with the use of different functional classifications.