ABSTRACT
Bringing up any family involves coping with problems and making decisions that affect the welfare of the whole family. The presence of a handicapped child means both that some decisions are harder to make and that some arise that might not have had to be faced at all if all the children had been normal. With cerebral palsy, there is not even a recurrence rate to be taken into account. There is no clear evidence of an important genetic component in the causation of the majority of the conditions which are included under this heading. Dr John Kershaw, for example, speaking of advances in medical and surgical techniques, goes on to say: These advances, however, are not spectacular in the sense of offering splendid prospects to large numbers of the handicapped. Bice states that although parents may be satisfied with the original diagnosis and advice and so feel no need to seek other advice, 'that is not the usual experience'.
