Cerebral palsy: symptoms, treatments and causes

Non-progressive chronic encephalopathy is popularly referred to as cerebral palsy. It is defined as a permanent non-invariable movement and posture disorder from non-progressive brain lesions that begin in the early years of life. Cerebral palsy is determined by changes in postural movements of patients as a result of an injury or dysfunction of the central nervous system and is not caused by degenerative disease.

Cerebral palsy is the most common motor change in children, about 1 to 2 children out of 1000 born, being more common among preterm infants, children weighing less than 1.5 kg at birth, problems during gestational abnormalities in the blood flow of the placenta or uterus.

Cerebral palsy can be caused by various factors such as genetic malformations, head trauma, prematurity, infections such as meningitis, sepsis and encephalitis or diseases such as rubella, syphilis, AIDS, toxoplasmosis and drug use such as alcohol, cigarettes and other drugs during the gestation

Individuals with cerebral palsy have as prevalent aspect the motor impairment, which influences their functional performance.

There are four basic types of cerebral palsy:

1. Spastic - characterized by hard and difficult movements,
2. Dyskinetic or athetoid - where involuntary and uncontrolled movements are common;
3. Ataxic - whose Coordination and balance are weakened;
4. Mixed - In addition to the motor disorder, which is mandatory for determining cerebral palsy, the clinical picture may also include other manifestations.

Symptoms Cerebral palsy

The symptoms of cerebral palsy differ in each individual due to the brain region involved with the injury, among the most common are mental retardation, generalized muscle weakness, respiratory distress, mood disorder, language problems and motor development.

The diagnosis of cerebral palsy can be made by the physician after performing physical and imaging tests that prove the condition of the individual.

Treatment Cerebral palsy

The treatment is carried out by several professionals in the health area, being part of the group of specialists, doctors, dentists, nurses, physiotherapists, among other professionals.

One of the possible treatments is physiotherapy since this helps in the postural improvement of the child, muscle tone and respiratory function and generally help the overall picture

See too: Bell's Palsy - Causes, Symptoms and Treatments

The pharmacological treatment is basically made by anticonvulsive drugs, medicines to control affective disorders and control of agitation due to mental deficiency. There is no cure for cerebral palsy, but treatment with physical therapy along with medications may improve the picture and symptoms of paralysis.

Currently research is under development for the use of stem cells (CT) in cerebral palsy, this type of treatment aims at regeneration of the injured region.

Prevention Cerebral palsy

As the causes of cerebral palsy are usually undefined, prevention becomes difficult to perform. Despite the difficulties, it is advisable to follow the prenatal care from the first week of gestation. Research is needed to elucidate the various causes of cerebral palsy, facilitating the development of preventive methods in the future.

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