| Cerebral Palsy Articles Children with Cerebral Palsy Have Similar Quality of Life to Other Children In the July 2007 edition of medical journal The Lancet, Allan Colver a Newcastle University professor based at the Sir James Spence Institute at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary, reported that children with cerebral palsy have a similar quality of life to other children. Colver recently carried out the biggest survey ever undertaken on cerebral palsy. It included 500 children between the ages of eight and 12. Researchers asked them to describe the quality of their life across ten categories. They found that for children with cerebral palsy, the type and severity of impairments did not affect quality of life in six categories: psychological wellbeing, self-perception, social support, school environment, perception of financial resources, and social acceptance. Colver wrote, “[Parents] can now be reassured that most children with cerebral palsy who are capable of providing information when eight to 12 years old, experience similar quality of life to other children their age.” But researchers also concluded that children with poorer walking ability had poorer physical wellbeing, while children with intellectual impairment tended to experience lower moods and emotions and less autonomy. In addition, children with speech difficulty often had poorer relationships with their parents. “The change now needed concerns attitudes,” added Colver. “Pity and sorrow shouldn’t be directed to disabled children because our findings indicate they experience most of life as do non-disabled children. Maximum effort is needed to support the social and educational policies that recognize the similarity between the lives of disabled children and those of other children, and ensure their rights as citizens—rather than as disabled children—to participate in society as fully as other children.” The Lancet - Vol. 369, Issue 9580, 30 June 2007, Pages 2137-2138 The Lancet can be contacted at: The Lancet, 360 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010-1710 |
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