Cerebral Palsy: Types, Symptoms and Preventive tips

Cerebral Palsy is a common childhood disability and about 17 million people are living with it worldwide. People did not know much about it, until recently, when the news of Satya Nadella’s son succumbing to it, came in. So what exactly is it? Let us have a look.

Cerebral Palsy was a lesser-known condition, until Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella’s son Zain succumbed to it at the age of 26. The CEO mentioned that Zain was born at 11:29 p.m. on August 13, 1996, all of three pounds and he did not cry. "Zain was transported from the hospital in Bellevue across Lake Washington to Seattle Children's Hospital with its state-of-the-art Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Anu began her recovery from the difficult birth. I spent the night with her in the hospital and immediately went to see Zain the next morning. Little did I know then how profoundly our lives would change," Nadella said. So what is this condition? Let us know the basics!

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Cerebral Palsy is a group of disorders that affect a person's ability to move and maintain balance and posture. CP is the most common motor disability in childhood. Cerebral means having to do with the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles. CP is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that affects a person’s ability to control his or her muscles. CP is a lifelong disability and there is no curative treatment available for it yet. Following are the 4 types of CP, as stated by CDC:

1. Spastic Cerebral Palsy
   Spastic CP affects about 80% of people with CP. People with spastic CP have increased muscle tone. This means their muscles are stiff and, as a result, their movements can be awkward. Spastic CP usually is described by what parts of the body are affected: Spastic diplegia/diparesis, Spastic hemiplegia/hemiparesis, Spastic quadriplegia/quadriparesis
2. Dyskinetic Cerebral Palsy
   People with dyskinetic CP have problems controlling the movement of their hands, arms, feet, and legs, making it difficult to sit and walk. The movements are uncontrollable and can be slow and writhing or rapid and jerky. Sometimes the face and tongue are affected and the person has a hard time sucking, swallowing, and talking.
3. Ataxic Cerebral Palsy
   People with ataxic CP have problems with balance and coordination. They might be unsteady when they walk. They might have a hard time with quick movements or movements that need a lot of control, like writing. They might have a hard time controlling their hands or arms when they reach for something.
4. Mixed Cerebral Palsy
   Some people have symptoms of more than one type of CP. The most common type of mixed CP is spastic-dyskinetic CP.

Signs and symptoms

The most common symptoms of cerebral palsy begin to appear in the first 3 years of age in children. These vary from person to person and according to age. For example, breastfeeding children, under the age of one year, may begin to walk and talk late, crawl in an unusual manner, have difficulty in eating and swallowing food and liquids. Some symptoms in people with CP that can be seen to persist after 3 years, through adulthood are:

• Difficulty in seeing and hearing
• Difficulty in thinking and understanding
• Body ache at most times
• Stiffness in muscles and loss of balance in the body
• Tremors in the body (involuntary movement)
• Speed of doing any task is less and the body aches
• One side of the body is not very active
• No control over natural activities like urination
• Difficulty in walking, bending or limping or walking with knees bent forward
• Excessive drooling or difficulty swallowing food
• Difficulty in grasping things with fingers.

How to Prevent It?

Some safety measures can be adopted to protect unborn babies and newborns from becoming victims of this disorder.

• Women must get vaccinated before pregnancy, against viruses like rubella or zika, which can affect fetal health.
• Blood pressure and diabetesmust be under control.
• Avoid cigarettes, drugs and alcohol during pregnancy.
• Any possible Rh incompatibility between the other mother and the newborn needs to be recognized.
• Proper medical care during childbirth should be received.
• One must be careful with the baby to avoid any kind of head injury after birth.