How Is Cerebral Palsy Diagnosed?

Parents are often the first to notice that their infant is not developing normally. Infants with cerebral palsy
are often slow to roll over, sit, crawl, or walk. When an infant develops more slowly than usual it is called
developmental delay.
 Some of the skills that infants should have include:
• Holding own head up when lying flat in a bed at 3 months
• Sitting and rolling over by 6 months
• Walking by 12-18 months
• Speaking simple sentences by 24 months
Most children with cerebral palsy are diagnosed by the time they are two years old. But if a child’s
symptoms are mild, it can be hard for a doctor to make a true diagnosis before the child is four or five years
old. If the doctor thinks a child has cerebral palsy, he or she will probably schedule an appointment to see
the child and talk to the parents about their child’s physical and behavioral development.