Cerebral palsy is a disorder/condition that affects movement, muscle tone and posture. It does not get worse as the child ages, and it can get better with treatment.
About 70 percent of cerebral palsy cases result from injury or abnormal development in the brain before birth. Only a small percent of cases result from a lack of oxygen during delivery, according to a report by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy
Most children start to exhibit symptoms of cerebral palsy in infancy and are diagnosed around the ages of two and three. Cerebral palsy can affect just one limb, one side of the body or the whole body. Symptoms of cerebral palsy can include:
- too stiff or too relaxed muscles
- exaggerated reflexes (spasticity)
- stiff muscles with normal reflexes (rigidity)
- lack of muscle coordination (ataxia)
- tremors/involuntary movements
- slow, writhing movements (athetosis)
- motor skill milestone delays
- favoring one side of the body
- walking difficulty
- excessive drooling and swallowing difficulty
- sucking and eating difficulty
- speech development delays
- precise motion difficulty
Causes of Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy can be acquired after birth. In the first two years of life, brain injuries and brain infections can occur that can result in the condition. Severe jaundice that isn't treated can also cause cerebral palsy after birth.
There are many reasons why an infant may be born with cerebral palsy. One of these reasons is infections the mother acquires during pregnancy, such as rubella and toxoplasmosis. Other reasons can be because of:
- insufficient oxygen when placenta is not functioning properly or it tears away from the uterine wall before delivery
- asphyxia during delivery (for only a very small percent of cases)
- Rh disease
- blood-clotting disorders
- prematurity (premature babies are 30 times more likely to develop cerebral palsy)
Types of Cerebral Palsy
Most cases of cerebral palsy are spastic cerebral palsy. With this type of cerebral palsy, muscles are stiff, which makes movement difficult. It can affect both legs, one side of the body or the whole body.
A second type of cerebral palsy is athetoid/dyskinetic. It affects the whole body, and children have trouble learning to control their bodies well enough to sit and walk. There can be oral difficulties (sucking, swallowing and talking) with this type of cerebral palsy.
The last type of cerebral palsy is ataxic. This form affects balance and coordination. Writing and other precise movements may be difficult for a person with ataxic cerebral palsy to do.
Diagnosing Cerebral Palsy
Evaluating a child's movements is instrumental in diagnosing cerebral palsy. Most parents notice something is amiss when an infant isn't hitting milestone achievements like rolling over, crawling, sitting and walking. The doctor will take into consideration family medical history and may order a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test, computed tomography (CT) scan and/or an ultrasound to determine a diagnosis.
Treating and Preventing Cerebral Palsy
The best treatment for cerebral palsy is therapy. What body parts are affected by the condition determine what kind of therapy will help improve symptoms. Physical, occupational and speech therapy are all types of therapy that can help treat this condition.
Medication can be helpful in treating cerebral palsy. The most common is Botox, which is injected directly into the affected muscle. There are also some oral medications that may help relax muscles, but they don't work on everyone.
Another way to treat cerebral palsy is through surgery. One surgery implants a pump under the skin, which continuously gives the person the medication baclofen. This surgery is done in patients with moderate to severe spasticity.
Another surgery is selective dorsal rhizotomy. This surgery is usually only done in patients who have not responded well to other treatments and have severe leg spasticity in both legs. In this surgery, doctors cut nerve fibers that they have determined to be causing the spasticity.
There are only a few things a parent can do to prevent a child from having cerebral palsy.
Having excellent prenatal care, which includes an Rh negative woman receiving the Rhogam injection to prevent Rh disease, is one way to avoid an infant being born with cerebral palsy. When the infant is born, s/he should have routine vaccinations, which can prevent meningitis (a cause of brain damage). Also, prevent head injuries to the child. In most cases, the cause of cerebral palsy isn't known so prevention can't happen.
Cerebral palsy is a condition that affects a person's muscles and with treatment symptoms can improve. A person with cerebral palsy may have other conditions, such as mental retardation, learning disabilities, seizures and vision, speech and hearing problems.
Sources:
American Pregnancy Association, "Cerebral Palsy" (accessed February 20, 2011)
Mayo Clinic, "Cerebral Palsy" (accessed February 20, 2011)
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for educational purposes only and should not be used for diagnosis or to guide treatment without the opinion of a health professional. Any reader who is concerned about his or her health should contact a doctor for advice.
Tamara Frank - My name is Tamara Frank and have been writing for Suite101 for two years. I have self-published a book titled "Lessons I Learned From ...
