CEREBRAL PALSY - symptoms-treatment-medicines- signs, preventive care and cure

CEREBRAL PALSY

Cerebral palsy (CP) ranks as the most common cause of crippling of children in the United States. Almost one quarter of a million persons are afflicted. Too often people associate the abnormalities of movement and muscular control, which are the outstanding features of CP, with mental retardation and lifelong dependency on others. But the majority of CP victims is not mentally retarded and is capable, with special training, of becoming self-sufficient. Cerebral palsy is not an inherited disorder, or a contagious one, or a progressive one.

 Cerebral refers to the brain, and palsy to muscularweakness. So the name implies that it is a condition of muscular weakness or disability resulting from brain dam- age. The brain damage may occur before, during, or shortly after birth for many different reasons. (Brain damage in adulthood leading to disability is not considered CP.)

The nature and extent of disability will, of course, depend on the amount of brain damage. There are three ways in which the muscles may be affected: in the spastic variety of CP, muscles are stiff and tight, and weakness is profound; in the athetoid form, muscles contract without apparent reason, leading to uncontrolled grimaces and limb movements; in the ataxic form, talking and other movements are poorly coordinated. 

Along with these difficulties there may be hearing and sight impairment, speech disturbance, poor ability to learn, convulsions, emotional problems, and sometimes, unfortunately, mental retardation. Despite these handicaps, however, modern training methods offer more hope than ever before for even the most severe form of CPO Primary prevention of CP begins with good antenatal (prenatal) care.

German measles and other infections early in pregnancy may damage the brain of the developing child. Vaccination against German measles- before a girl reaches childbearing age or, in the case of an adult woman, when there is little likelihood of immediate pregnancy-is an important preventive measure. Other infections during pregnancy are often hard to detect, and the physician cannot al- ways predict whether or not they will harm the baby. 

The preventive approach is limited to recommending adequate protection against diseases for which vaccines are available and avoiding unnecessary exposure to others. Another known, and now preventable, cause of potential brain damage to children is Rh incompatibility.

Detecting this blood problem is now part of routine antenatalcare. The use of special techniques-such as intra- uterine blood transfusion for the fetus and delivery by cesarean section if necessary before severe damage occurs can prevent brain and other organ harm. A recent development promises to eliminate the hazard of Rh incompatibility. 

It is well known that the first child does not suffer harmful effects from Rh incompatibility; the succeeding children are at risk. This is because it takes time for the mother to become sensitized to the Rh factor.

A new medication, called Rhogram, when given to the mother within 48 hours after birth of the first child, prevents development of sensitization to the Rh factor and eliminates risk for succeeding children. To prevent sensitization from ever developing, the medication must be given after each subsequent pregnancy. 

Premature infants are more likely than others to be afflicted with CPo Among factors in the mother which predispose toward premature birth are cigarette smoking, infection of the kidney and bladder, and a history of having borne previous premature infants.