Brainpalsy.com - Helping Parents Combat Cerebral Palsy

Although the occurrence of ataxic cerebral palsy is quite rare (such type is only accounted for about 5 to 10 percent of the entire cerebral palsy cases), keep in mind that it is still cerebral palsy, and it can cause bothering problems not only on your affected child but also to you as well.

The following are some of the facts about ataxic cerebral palsy which you need to be aware of:

• The cerebellum is the part of the human brain that is damaged, causing the ataxic type of cerebral palsy. It is responsible for the coordination and balance of body movements.

• Once damaged, it could result on the following:

o Hypotonia disorder or poor muscle tone;

o Having hard time maintaining balance;

o Depth perception disorders;

o Various tremors; and

o Disability in controlling the motion and range of voluntary movements.

• Children affected with ataxic cerebral palsy may show the following signs:

o Demonstrating unsteady gait;

o Intention tremors while attempting to perform any voluntary movements;

o Clumsiness and difficulty in performing such voluntary movements;

o Writing task is severely affected;

o Depth perception disorder results to coarser movements like reaching for any object;

o Involuntary and rapid eyeball movements; and

o Other related conditions such as visual and hearing disabilities, seizures, and possibly mental retardation.

In most cases, a doctor diagnoses a child for any possible presence of ataxic cerebral palsy through a combination of meticulous physical examination and findings from medical imaging methods like MRI and CT scans. Such findings along with the result of the physical examination are used to evaluate and identify if the brain is developing normally or not. Moreover, if not diagnosed at an early age, it may worse as the affected child ages.

Sad to say, the cure for ataxic cerebral palsy has to be formulated. However, it can be treated by the help of therapies and medical substances. One of the popular treatments used to combat ataxic cerebral palsy is by undergoing a process called chronic cerebella. It starts by placing any stimulation medium such as electrode at the surface of the damaged cerebellum. This is believed to restore the muscle tone and balance.

It is important that you are aware of the signs of ataxic cerebral palsy for it will be your cue if your child is suffering from it, thus you can brought him/her to your physician for further evaluation. Your childs life as well as his/her future is at stake here, so it is imperative that you are not negligent. Be alert and be aware of ataxic cerebral palsy.

The First Diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy

The term diagnosis comes from two greek words: dia, meaning across and gnosis, meaning to know. Greeks defined the word as understanding or learning what is happening across a subject or object. More easily defined, diagnosis means to detect, learn or identify the nature of a problem.

When a child has cerebral palsy, a parent usually makes the first diagnosis of the disorder. They detect their child is abnormally floppy or rigid. They identify differences in their child from other children. Parents learn about developmental milestones their children should be achieving and recognize a delay in doing so.

Why Aren’t Babies Diagnosed With Cerebral Palsy When They Are Born?

Cerebral Palsy is difficult to diagnose at birth. Since it’s not a genetic disease there is no way to check a baby’s blood to see if they are carriers. Cerebral Palsy is a term describing a group of disorders caused by brain damage. Brain damage is almost undetectable in newborns unless it’s severe. Symptoms in infants such as abnormal floppiness or rigidity can lead a doctor to diagnose cerebral palsy. However, these symptoms aren’t usually present at birth.

How Do Doctors Diagnose Cerebral Palsy?

Doctors are usually alerted by concerned parents about suspected problems. The doctor will ask detailed questions about pre-natal care, problems with pregnancy, a mother’s heath while pregnancy, pre-maturity and the heath of the child since birth. The doctor will perform a full physical exam. Once the doctor examines the child for general health issues, they begin tests to help determine potential disability. Since cerebral palsy is a non-progressive disorder, the symptoms a child initially displays will usually determine the severity they will endure for a lifetime.

Diagnosis by Reflex Testing

After speaking with parents about a child’s development, a doctor will check for excessive muscle tone and abnormal posture. The doctor also tests a child’s reflexes. Cerebral palsy children often retain some reflexes only known in infants under the age of 6 months. One of those reflexes is called the Moro Reflex. It occurs when a baby under six months old is held in its back with its feet raised above its head. The baby reflexively reaches up in an embracing gesture. The Moro reflex occurring after 6 months of age could indicate cerebral palsy.

Cerebral Palsy and Hand Preference

Doctors often quiz mothers of babies with potential cerebral palsy about their child’s hand preference. Most children don’t have any left or right hand preference until they reach 12 months old. Babies with cerebral palsy often show hand preference as young as 6 months old. Spastic hemiplegia, one form of cerebral palsy, causes one side of the body to be stronger than the other. Early hand preference is often a symptom of that form of the disorder.

CT Scans EEG and MRI Diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy

CT is short for the words computed tomography, an x-ray imaging technique that uses computers to create a picture of the brain. Brain malformation, cysts and underdevelopment are usually visible on a CT scan. By studying CT scans, doctors can determine how severe a child might be brain damaged. The amount of brain damage helps determine how severely a child will be affected by the symptoms of cerebral palsy.

MRI is short for magnetic resonance imaging, a brain imaging technique using radio waves and magnetic fields to create a picture of the brain. MRIs can look closer to the bone for abnormalities than CT scans. Electroencephalogram, or EEG for short, records electrical currents in the brain with special patches attached to the scalp. It’s used to help detect seizure disorders and unusual electrical activity in the brain.

Diagnosis with Vision, Hearing and Intelligence Tests

Doctors will often bring in other heath professionals to help determine if other conditions related to cerebral palsy are present. Ophthalmologists test a child for vision problems or weakness in the ocular muscles. Doctors specializing in hearing problems test for deficiencies in auditory ranges. Some doctors administer intelligence tests to try and find mental impairment but they tend to be useful only when a child is older than the age of 4. Orthopedic doctors can be consulted for gait analysis. Certain forms of cerebral palsy result in a wide stance and an unbalanced walk.

Early diagnosis is key in helping children lessen the effects of cerebral palsy. Although it’s hard for a parent to accept something might be wrong with their child, they should consult a doctor at the first sign of developmental delay.

The first signs of cerebral palsy may be present from birth. Most children with cerebral palsy was diagnosed during the first 2 years of life. But if a child symptoms are mild, it may be difficult for a doctor to make a reliable diagnosis before the age of 4 or 5. However, if a doctor suspects cerebral palsy, he or she will most likely schedule an appointment to observe the child and talk to parents about their physical and behavioral development.  Doctors diagnose cerebral palsy, by assessing a child of motor skills and take a careful and thorough look at your medical history. In addition to checking the most characteristic symptoms - slow development, abnormal muscle tone, and the unusual position - a doctor must also rule out other disorders that can cause similar symptoms. Most importantly, a doctor must determine that the child’s condition is not worsening. Although the symptoms may change over time, cerebral palsy, by definition, is not progressive. If a child is continuously losing motor skills, the problem began more likely elsewhere - or as a genetic muscle disease, metabolic disorders, or tumours in the nervous system. An extensive medical history, diagnostic tests special, and in some cases, repeated checkups can help confirm that other disorders are not at fault.  Other additional tests are often used to rule out other movement disorders that might cause the same symptoms as cerebral palsy. Neuroimaging techniques that allow physicians to see in the brain (such as an MRI scan) can detect abnormalities that indicate a possible movement disorder treatable. In the case of cerebral palsy, an MRI can also show a doctor the location and type of brain damage.  Neuroimaging methods include:        * Cranial ultrasound. This test is used in high-risk preterm infants, since it is the least intrusive of imaging techniques, although not as successful as the two methods described below to capture subtle changes in the white matter - the type of brain tissue that is damaged in cerebral palsy.       * Computed Tomography (CT). This technique creates images that show the structure of the brain and areas of damage.       * The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. This test uses a computer, a magnetic field and radio waves to create an image of anatomical brain tissues and structures. Doctors prefer magnetic resonance imaging, as it offers the finest level of detail.  On rare occasions, metabolic disorders can masquerade as cerebral palsy and some children will require additional evidence to rule out. Most children have metabolic disorders characteristic brain abnormalities or malformations that appear on an MRI.  Other types of disorders may also be confused with cerebral palsy. For example, clotting disorders (which prevent blood clotting) may cause prenatal or perinatal strokes that damage the brain and cause symptoms characteristic of cerebral palsy. Because stroke is so often the cause of hemiplegic cerebral palsy, a doctor can be seen from the need to conduct tests on children with this type of cerebral palsy to exclude the presence of a coagulation disorder. If left undiagnosed, clotting disorders can cause more strokes and larger brain damage.  To confirm a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, a doctor can refer a child to other physicians with expertise and training as a child neurologist, pediatrician development, eye specialist (optometrist), or otologist (ear doctor). Additional comments help a doctor make a more accurate diagnosis and begin to develop a specific plan for treatment.