What is dyskinetic cerebral palsy?

• A. Accounts for 20-30% of cases, resulting from basal ganglia damage, producing involuntary movement disorders.
• B. Caused by peripheral nerve damage
• C. Is characterized by spastic hypertonia
• D. Occurs only in adults

Answer: (B)

Dyskinetic cerebral palsy occurs when the basal ganglia in the developing brain are damaged, leading to involuntary movements. The hallmark is movement that is hard to control, such as dystonia (twisted postures) and choreoathetoid movements (jerky, writhing motions) with fluctuating muscle tone. The basal ganglia play a key role in starting and regulating smooth movements, so injury here produces these involuntary patterns rather than the stiff, tight muscles seen in spastic CP. This type of CP makes up a minority of cases—roughly in the neighborhood of a quarter of CP—reflecting a specific disruption of central motor circuits rather than peripheral nerves. In contrast, peripheral nerve damage would not cause the characteristic brain-based movement disorders of CP, spastic hypertonia points to corticospinal tract injury (a different CP type), and CP begins in childhood, not exclusively in adults.