Cerebral Palsy: A Note to the Patient and Their Peers

Palsy is a general term used in medicine to denote paralysis of any part of the body resulting in senselessness on the affected part and rampant body motions. Cerebral palsy, as the term 'Cerebral' suggests, is characterized by lack of physical development resulting in non-development and non-movement in different areas of the body resulting in inability to maintain posture and balance, as the result of brain that is affected by the condition.

Cerebral Palsy differs from normal paralysis by the fact that it is concerned with the malfunctioning of the nervous system, particularly in the spinal cord resulting in the condition. Unlike paralysis which is caused by the damage of the nervous system, its roots during pregnancy or childbirth and caused by the damage to the motion controlling centre of the brain. The brain needs continuous supply of oxygen and the disruption of the oxygen while child birth may cause irreversible damage to the brain and may cause cerebral palsy. It is estimated that upto 5000 children are diagnosed with cerebral palsy in the United States every year and one in every 278 people have been reported of cerebral palsy. The conditions don't worsen over time and stay the way it was after the first few years of affliction.

Experts classify CP (short for cerebral palsy) based on the way it affects the muscles or the extremities involved and the major classifications include Spastic, Athetoid, Ataxic, Diplegia, Hemiplegia and Quadriplegia. Spastic is the condition where the muscles are too tight to be controlled and Athetoid is the opposite condition where the muscles are too loose to be controlled. Ataxic is a rare form of CP and is characterized by the loss of maintaining balance in a child. Children with Ataxic CP tend to fall often due to loss of balance. Dirplegia and Hemiplegia are similar conditions. In diplegia, the lower limbs are affected severely and hemiplegia is a condition where either the left side or the right side of the body is affected. Quadriplegia, as the name suggests is the condition where all the four limbs of the body are severely affected.

People with cerebral palsy experience difficulty in walking and doing day-to-day chores which include handling anything. They may also have trouble with tasks such as writing or using scissors. Some have other medical conditions, including seizure disorders or mental impairment.

There is no cure for cerebral palsy as of now, but treatment and care can improve the lives of those who are suffering from the conditions. Treatment is given in the form of medicines, braces, and physical, occupational and speech therapy.

Vijay K Shetty, Get more information on: Cerebral Palsy Treatment India

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