"What Are the Typical Early Indicators of Cerebral Palsy?"
Cerebral Palsy Explanation and Symptoms
Cerebral palsy (CP) refers to a persistent central nervous system dysfunction caused by various non-progressive injuries that occur to the fetus before birth, during childbirth, or in the neonatal period. Common manifestations in CP patients include delayed motor development and abnormal postures.
Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy
- Delayed Motor Development: Patients typically exhibit symptoms such as inability to lift their heads, inability to turn over, and instability when sitting.
- Abnormal Postures: Some patients may display postures like head extension, stiffness in the limbs, and opisthotonus, accompanied by clenched fists or thumb adduction.
- Abnormal Reflexes: Phenomena like weakened or absent sucking reflexes, enhanced Moro reflexes, and exaggerated startle reflexes may occur.
- Changes in Muscle Strength and Tone: Compared to healthy individuals, CP patients may have reduced muscle strength, difficulty maintaining normal posture during daily activities, and may experience flaccidity in their limbs.
- Other Conditions: Premature babies may experience apnea, feeding difficulties, and slow weight gain. Patients with skull defects may exhibit symptoms like headaches, vomiting, and seizures.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Parents are advised to promptly bring their children to the hospital for a diagnosis through a combination of physical examination and imaging studies. Appropriate treatment methods are then selected based on the underlying cause. For spastic CP, medications such as baclofen and eperisone hydrochloride can be prescribed as per doctor's instructions. For athetoid CP, patients can be administered trihexyphenidyl and donepezil mesylate under medical supervision to slow disease progression. Additionally, rehabilitation training can be integrated to alleviate discomforting symptoms.
