PRECIOUS HEALTH TALK WITH PRECIOUS MOSHOPIADI MAGAJANE
WHAT IS A CEREBRAL PALSY?
This week on Precious Health Talk I want to educate you my dear reader about a disorder which we tend to ignore in our communities known as Cerebral Palsy, commonly known as CP. According to recent researches every hour a child is born with Cerebral Palsy.
We often see children in our communities with different disabilities and not know what the actual cause is, and the bad thing about this is we tend to be judgmental and start blaming the parents for their kids’ disabilities. Instead of supporting each other as a community what we instead do is mock these kids and this then results in parents hiding these kids from everyone, depriving them of the rights to live freely in the community and even accessing medical care. These kids end up suffering as they are always locked up in the house, their conditions complicate because they are never taken to clinics or hospitals, therefore limiting their life spans.
cerebral palsy is a disorder of muscle control which results from some damage to part of the brain. The term cerebral palsy is used when the problem has occurred early in life, to the developing brain.
What we should all know is that the brain controls all that we do. Different parts of the brain control the movement of every muscle of the body, so in cerebral palsy, there is damage to, or lack of development in, one of these areas of the brain.
Children with cerebral palsy can have problems such as muscle weakness, stiffness, awkwardness, slowness, shakiness, and difficulty with balance and these problems can range from mild to severe. In mild cerebral palsy, the child may be slightly clumsy in one arm or leg, and the problem may be barely noticeable. In severe cerebral palsy, the child may have a lot of difficulties in performing everyday tasks and movements.
What are the Various types of Cerebral palsy?
1.Spastic cerebral palsy
This is the most common type of cerebral palsy and Spasticity simply means stiffness or tightness of muscles. The muscles are stiff because the messages to the muscles are relayed incorrectly from the damaged parts of the brain.
When people without cerebral palsy perform a movement, groups of muscles contract whilst the opposite groups of muscles relax or shorten in order to perform the movement. In children with spastic cerebral palsy, both groups of muscles may contract together, making the movement difficult.
2. Dyskinetic cerebral palsy
This refers to the type of cerebral palsy with abnormal involuntary movements. It is divided into two types of movement problems, called dystonia and athetosis.
3. Ataxic cerebral palsy
This is the least common type of cerebral palsy and Ataxic (or ataxia) is the word used for unsteady shaky movements or tremor. Children with ataxia also have problems with balance.
4. Mixed types
Many children do not have just one type, but a mixture of several of these movement patterns.
Which part of the body is affected?
Again, this varies greatly from one child to another. Certain words are used to describe the parts affected:
Hemiplegia – the leg and arm on one side of the body are affected (also described as hemiparesis).
Diplegia – both legs are predominantly affected. Children with diplegia usually also have some difficulties with their arm and hand movements.
Quadriplegia – both arms and both legs, and the trunk, are affected (also described as quadriparesis). The muscles of the face, mouth and throat can also be involved.
What are the causes of cerebral palsy?
1. If the brain does not grow or form properly. The result is that children may have brain malformations.
2. In the early months of pregnancy – for example, if the mother is exposed to certain infections such as Rubella (German Measles), or Cytomegalovirus (CMV).
3. During labour or at birth – for example, if the baby does not receive enough oxygen,such as during prolonged labour
4. In the period shortly after birth – for example, when an infant develops a severe infection, such as meningitis, in the first few days or weeks of life.
5. In children having accidents in the early years of life, causing permanent brain injury. These children are also considered to have cerebral palsy.
What other problems may the child have?
Children with CP can have problems with hearing, eye sight, Epilepsy, Intellectual or learning disability, Perceptual difficulties, Gastro-oesophageal reflux, Orthopaedic problems, Constipation, Nutritional difficulties, Saliva control problems, Recurrent chest infections, Bone disease, and Undescended testes.
The most common asked question is ‘will my child get better”?
Well ‘Cerebral palsy’ refers to a permanent condition, and the problems associated with this condition (such as muscle weakness or stiffness, and unwanted movements) remain throughout the lifetime of a person with cerebral palsy. However, children can learn to cope with the condition as they grow. Treatment often brings about improvement, though not a cure.
The other fact is that CP does not deteriorate, the damage done to the brain early in life does not worsen. Sometimes it may seem that the child’s condition is becoming worse and there are many reasons to this apparent deterioration. As we all know that as children grow older, more is expected of them and for a child with cerebral palsy, simple tasks such as learning to dress and eat independently may take a longer time and may be achieved later than usual. This delay in their development might make it seem that deterioration is occurring, but this is not the case.
The other reason being that as the child grows and uses his muscles more and more, they may become tighter and during growth spurts, the child’s bones may grow more quickly than his muscles, which can lead to a tightening of muscles, and a problem such as toe walking may become more apparent. Stiffness in muscles may be due to spasticity, contractures or a mixture of both. It can be difficult to tell the difference but it is important to distinguish between spasticity and shortening because they have different treatments.
Any common childhood illness, such as an ear or throat infection, can cause a child’s progress to come to a standstill for a while, and a child can also go through an emotional stress such as when the child feels they are being pushed to achieve a skill, they may react by becoming stubborn or refusing to co-operate. in a child with CP this can certainly be a reason for lack of progress but it does not mean that his condition is deteriorating.
Most children with cerebral palsy are healthy, and can expect a normal life span. A small group of children with extremely severe cerebral palsy and associated conditions such as epilepsy may be at risk of reduced life expectancy (for example, they may develop recurrent chest infections or have prolonged seizures).
What parents/caregivers should do when they have children with CP is that they should consult with their local clinics and hospitals where the child will be thoroughly assessed by several health care professionals and the necessary help will be given. As a Physiotherapist working at the local hospital we have a CP group that we run every Tuesdays and what we do is advise parents on ways to encourage children to move, and to develop skills such as sitting, crawling and walking. Practical advice on ways to lift and carry children, and on positioning children for play and eating, can also be given. We also give advice on suitable footwear, splints to improve children’s foot posture and gait, and equipment such as supportive chairs and standing and walking frames.
Precious Moshopiadi Mogajane is a Physiotherapist,an Executive Chef,Public Speaker, an Associate Minister of the Word of God and Author of a book called GRACEFULLY BROKEN. She writes in her personal capacity.
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Well written article.