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Cerebral palsy is a neuromuscular disorder, commonly found in children. So many parents ask the question: Is cerebral palsy hereditary? Scientists believe that disorders in the genome are one of the factors that cause disease. However, is cerebral palsy really genetic?
1. Learn about cerebral palsy in children
Cerebral palsy (CP) is a neuromuscular disorder caused by damage to the motor cortex of the developing brain that is a leading cause of disability in young children. It affects about 500,000 children and adults, with about 8,000 infants and about 1,200 to 1,500 preschool-age children diagnosed each year (According to the American Cerebral Palsy Association).Cerebral palsy affects motor function, including the ability to move, grasp objects, talk alone; affects muscle tone, so patients may have stiffness - muscle stiffness or loose muscles - soft joints.
Clinical signs to diagnose cerebral palsy include:
Dystonicity, including hypotension, and increased or decreased muscle tone. Difficulty in movement, poor coordination. Abnormal reflexes, including over or underreflexed. Difficulty balancing and maintaining posture. Reduced ability to work/work. Difficulty in controlling operations. Poor pronunciation.
Currently, the treatment of cerebral palsy is mainly symptomatic treatment, with popular forms such as physical therapy, pronunciation practice, neurological and psychological treatment. Some medications help relieve pain, relax muscles, and prevent seizures. In some cases surgery is possible.
2. Causes of cerebral palsy
The type and severity of cerebral palsy depends largely on the extent of the brain injury and when it occurred. Cases leading to cerebral palsy:
Prenatal brain cell division and formation disorder. During fetal life, embryonic leaves are formed, divide into cells, and then develop into organs with specific functions. If an adverse factor interferes with this process, distorting brain differentiation, disorders can be formed. Nerve cells are underdeveloped or incompletely developed. In the body, myelin acts as a sheath to protect nerve cells. Absence or hypoplasia of myelin can lead to unprotected nerve cells, resulting in damage. Perinatal brain cells die. During childbirth, brain cells can die from asphyxiation (suffocation) or blood loss. This is most commonly seen in difficult deliveries or late in a pregnancy requiring an emergency delivery. Postpartum dysfunction or mismatch. After birth, brain injury can lead to brain damage and cerebral palsy. Some common causes are brain infection, trauma, and asphyxia.
3. Is cerebral palsy hereditary?
First of all, readers need to understand the concept of disease caused by genetic disorders and the concept of genetic disease.
Inherited disease is when a blood relative such as a grandparent or parent carries a disease-causing gene, which may or may not be expressed externally, and passes that gene on to children and grandchildren. Genetic diseases can be warned or detected through prenatal screening and routine antenatal care.
Diseases caused by genetic disorders means that grandparents and parents do not carry disease genes, but during fertilization and fetal development, adverse factors affect genetic information, causing genes to appear. sick. Therefore, genetic disorders cannot be predicted by prenatal screening.
Scientists have done a lot of research to evaluate the genome of people with cerebral palsy, but so far there is no really complete understanding of this disease. However, scientists insist that Cerebral Palsy is NOT hereditary. Although a number of genetic or genetic factors influence the likelihood of developing the disease, they are small factors, and do not determine whether a person will develop cerebral palsy.
However, some studies have shown that there is a complex interaction between disease genes (hereditary or not) and environmental factors, which increases the odds of a person developing cerebral palsy. Those factors could be:
Muscle spasticity : Stiffness, tension, or spasm of a muscle. A baby's head at birth is much smaller than average. Intellectual decline. Convulsions . In cases where a family member has one of the above diseases or a child is born with one of the above symptoms, the family should consult a doctor for solutions to prevent or detect the disease early.
In short, cerebral palsy is a disease caused by genes but NOT inherited, readers should not be too worried. However, if there are any doubts, you should consult a specialist for advice and discuss the best solution.
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