Cerebral palsy is a large group of disorders that can affect movement and muscles in the body. It mainly causes damage to the brain and mostly occurs before birth. The symptoms of cerebral palsy start showing as a child. This condition causes disrupted movement that includes stiffness, floppiness, rigidity of the limbs, abnormal posture, involuntary movements, difficulty in walking, among others. People with cerebral palsy can also face problems in swallowing and commonly have eye muscle twiches, in which the eyes cannot focus on the same object at the same time.
Dr Aniket Patil, orthopedic surgeon from Noble hospital in Pune, says, "In Cerebral Palsy, a person's ability to move and maintain a balance is hampered. In this particular disorder, we can see problems in moving muscle. If a child has problems with movement, coordination, speech and eating, these can be symptoms of CP. It is necessary to have early diagnosis and treatment. CP can not be cured, but there are many treatment options with which a child's daily activities can be improved. Orthopedic surgery, speech therapy, physiotherapy, occupation therapy, etc are some such treatment options."
The patients suffering from this disorder might also have reduced range of motion at various joints of their bodies due to muscle stiffness. Cerebral palsy's effect on brain and body function is different in every patient. Some affected people can walk, while other might need help. Some people show normal brain development, but others have intellectual disabilities. Epilepsy, blindness and deafness can also occur in some cases of cerebral palsy.
Cerebral palsy types
Cerebral palsy is classified on the basis of the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS). There are different types of CP that can have an impact on distinct parts of the brain. Each and every type causes various movement disorders. Here are the 5 main types of cerebral palsy:
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- Spastic Cerebral palsy
- Dyskinetic Cerebral palsy
- Hypotonic Cerebral palsy
- Ataxic Cerebral palsy
- Mixed Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy symptoms
The signs and symptoms of this condition vary from one patient to the other. Some might experience only a few of these symptoms, while there are people who cannot move at all. Here are the major symptoms of cerebral palsy:
- Seizures
- Difficulty in eating
- Excessive drooling
- Tremors or involuntary movements
- Stiffness or floppiness in the body
- Not being able to balance
- Slow movements
- Delay in motor skills development
- Learning and speaking difficulties
- Not being able to walk properly
Cerebral palsy causes
There are many factors that can lead to this condition. Cerebral palsy is majorly caused by an abnormality or disruption in the brain development, usually before the child takes birth. In a lot of cases, the cause is not even known. The main causes of cerebral palsy are:
- Genetic factor
- Brain bleed
- Fetal stroke
- Maternal infections
- Head injury
- Lack of oxygen
Cerebral palsy diagnosis and treatment
Signs and symptoms of cerebral palsy can become more prominent with time. Therefore, a proper diagnosis cannot be made until a few months after the child is born. For the diagnosis, your doctor might conduct a number of tests to do the full diagnosis and rule out all the underlying causes. The doctor can tell you to get an MRI and a cranial ultrasound. However, if one of the symptoms us seizures, then an ECG can also help in understanding the condition. Other basic tests such as hearing, speech, vision and development can also help in diagnosing cerebral palsy.
Cerebral Palsy Treatment
Dr Sandeep Patwardhan, pediatric orthopedic surgeon from Sancheti hospital, in Pune, said, "Though the disease does not progress with age as the child grows older and taller muscles become stiff and prevents the child from their proper use . It affects the normal walking, sitting and standing ability , of the child . These tight muscles should be relaxed at the earliest age with the help of physiotherapy, stretching and proper trained rehabilitation . As the child grows older between 3 and 5 years usually Botulinum injections in the muscles may be given to relax the muscles and with the help of plasters we can bring the muscles to normal length . This allows child proper placement of the feet, knees and the child may be able to stand and walk using caliper, braces and a walker. Physiotherapy remains a very important part of recovery and rehabilitation process. As the child becomes even older between 7 to 10 years the child may require first surgery to lengthen the tendons, correct deformities or stabilize joints which will allow the child to place his feet knees and hips properly and improve mobility. When the child near maturity between 14-16 years, another surgery may be required for the correction of deformities and loosening of his muscles so that child may be able to walk near to normal. Though CP affects the brain , it causes a lot of deformity and stiffness in muscles . So the entire growing age of the child between 0 and 16 years will require some form of treatment in the form of good physiotherapy and orthopaedic treatment has a big role to play with Botolinum treatment and plasters in the small age group , small surgeries in the later age group and major surgeries in the mature age group. The brain usually though damaged for motor control is otherwise normal and the child can have normal intelligence and can attend normal school and is highly functional . The Orthopaedic treatment can help child become more independent and improve his ability to move around in the house or school . Orthopedic surgery is the mainstay of treatment of CP . Newer treatments like Bachlofen pumps and multilevel single event surgeries have revolutionized the care of CP and we can make more and more children walk near to normal using this methods."
Children and adults with cerebral palsy need undivided attention an care with medical experts. The patient might require help from a pediatrician, neurologist, psychiatrist, neurologist and even a therapist to treat all the symptoms of cerebral palsy. Medications and phyiscal therapies are the most common course of treatments that are done by the medical expert. There are some speech and language therapies that can also help in coping up with difficult symptoms of the condition such as inability to communicate. And, orthopaedic surgeries can help in treating children with severe deformities.