Cerebral Paralysis

Cerebral Paralysis is an older name for Cerebral Palsy. Cerebral Paralysis was first identified by a British surgeon named William Little in 1860. Cerebral Paralysis was also called Little's Disease named for the surgeon who first discoved it.  Little raised the possibility of asphyxia during birth as a chief cause of the disorder. It was not until 1897 that Sigmund Freud suggested that a difficult birth was not the cause but rather only a symptom of other effects on fetal development. Modern research has shown that asphyxia is not found during birth in at least 75% of cases. Such research also shows that Freud's view was correct, even though during the late 19th century and most of the 20th century Little's view was the traditional explanation.