Recognizing Signs of Cerebral Palsy in a Child

As a permanent and complex disorder, cerebral palsy is caused due to damage caused to the brain of a child. The brain damage can occur due to a number of reasons. Also, the damage may be caused to the child’s brain before, during or after his birth. At present, there is no permanent cure for cerebral palsy. The seasoned orthopedics tries to reduce the symptoms and effects of the permanent disorder through medication, orthotic devices, speech therapy, physical therapy or occupational therapy.

Simple Ways to Care for a Child with Cerebral Palsy

It is always important for parents to get their kids diagnosed and treated for cerebral palsy immediately. Also, they must understand various aspects of cerebral palsy management to make the child feel comfortable. But cerebral palsy is often diagnosed only after 18 months of the child’s birth.  There are many instances when parents failed to diagnose symptoms of mild cerebral palsy when the kid is 3 to 5 years old. That is why; it become essential for parents to know how to recognize the signs of cerebral palsy in a kid.

To identify the developmental disabilities, the parent must understand know four distinct categories of developmental progress of a child. Broadly, the developmental progress of a child of a child can be divided into four categories – physical, social, cognitive and emotional. Also, the parent must know the normal stages of development to identify the developmental issues immediately. However, the parents must get the child diagnosed for cerebral palsy when they notice lack of physical development.

The parents must get the child diagnosed for cerebral palsy when the child does not meet common developmental milestones like crawling, sitting, walking, rolling over, visual alertness, and picking of small objects. The orthopedic will observe the development of the child over a specific period of time and screen the child regularly to identify improvement disabilities. He will further observe and assess the development of the child based on his posture, muscle tones and reflexes. However, the severity and symptoms of cerebral palsy differ from one child to another.

The child with cerebral palsy further experiences symptoms of the disorder according to the location of movement problems. The symptoms further get aggravated if the child is not provided with adequate care and effective treatment on time. Hence, it is important for parents to get the child diagnosed for cerebral palsy immediately and promptly. At the same time, they also need to ensure that the child is diagnosed and treated by a skilled and experienced orthopedic to manage and reduce symptoms of the complex disorder over a longer period of time.