Diagnosing Cerebral Palsy
In a large number of cases, a child born with Cerebral Palsy may not bear any outward symptoms of having the disorder. Since the disease often manifests as abnormal motor function and diminished mental capacity, it is often impossible to make any determination about the disorder until the infant develops and begins exploring its surroundings. Once a child begins to show some symptoms of having the disorder, such as delayed speech or lack of coordination, most health care professionals will examine risk factors for the disease to determine the chances that the symptoms may be related to Cerebral Palsy or something else.
Risk factors
Risk factors are factors that make it more likely that an infant will develop a disorder or disease. The presence of a risk factor does not indicate that the disease or disorder will develop and the absence of a risk factor does not mean that the disease or disorder will not develop. It is simply a diagnostic tool that allows a doctor to determine whether a child’s initial signs of behavior fit the profile of someone born with Cerebral Palsy.
If a child is developing some atypical symptoms, and the risk factors are present, doctors will probably ask parents to be especially observant of the child’s behavior. Risk factors can relate to the condition of the parent, the child, the pregnancy, and conditions that existed during delivery
Parental risk factors that may increase the likelihood of Cerebral Palsy developing include:
- Cases where the mother is 40 years or older while pregnant
- Cases where the mother is 20 years or younger while pregnant
- Cases where the father is 20 years or younger at the time of conception
- Parents of African – American heritage
Child related risk factors that may increase the likelihood of Cerebral Palsy developing include:
- Cases where an infant is born premature at less than 37 weeks old
- Cases where a child is born with a low birth weight, especially at less than 4 lbs.
- Cases where a child is the first born to a family
- Cases where a child is the fifth or more born to a family
- Cases where the children are twins, especially when one of the twins die prior to or during pregnancy
Delivery related risk factors that may increase the likelihood of Cerebral Palsy developing include:
- Cases where a mother experiences a breeched birch, face, transverse, or other abnormal presentation delivery
- Cases where the mother experiences fetal distress related problems, such as slow fetal heart beat during delivery
- Cases where the child is proven to have low Apgar scores for skin color, heart rate, breathing, muscle tone, and reflexes
Pregnancy related risk factors that may increase the likelihood of Cerebral Palsy developing include:
- Cases where child and mother share different and incompatible blood types and/or the mother has RH blood
- Cases where the mother becomes infected with a virus, especially German measles in the early stages of pregnancy
- Cases where the mother experiences vaginal bleeding during the third trimester
- Cases where the mother has diabetes, hypothyroidism, high blood pressure, seizures, while pregnant
- Cases where the mother has premature dilation due to an incompetent cervix
Cases where the mothers nutrition is inadequate
- Cases where the mother experiences bleeding due to Placentia previa (placenta overlays a portion of the cervix) or abruption placenta (early disconnection of the placenta from the uterine wall
Symptoms of Cerebral Palsy
Each individual with Cerebral Palsy will have different symptoms. The symptoms will depend on the type of Cerebral Palsy the individual has (see introduction), the severity of the brain damage that resulted in the Cerebral Palsy, and the unique characteristics of the individual. The following are some typical symptoms:
- Muscle tightness/spasticity
- Involuntary movements
- Speech Impairment
- Seizures
- Difficulty feeding
- Irregular gait
- Lack of Bladder control
- Breathing difficulty
- Learning disabilities
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