ABOUT CEREBRAL PALSY
The term “cerebral palsy” refers to a number of neurological disorders that can appear in infancy or early childhood, permanently affecting body movement and/or muscle coordination, but do not worsen over time. Although cerebral palsy affects muscle movement, it isn’t the result of problems in the muscles or nerves, but is caused by abnormalities in parts of the brain that control muscle movement. The majority of the children who are diagnosed with cerebral palsy are born with it, although it may not be diagnosed until months or years later, usually before the age of 3.
The most common form of cerebral palsy results in a lack of muscle coordination when performing voluntary movements (ataxia); stiff or tight muscles and exaggerated reflexes (spasticity); dragging of one foot or leg; walking on the toes or in a crouched or “scissor” type gait; and muscle tone that is either too stiff or too floppy. In a small number of children, cerebral palsy may be the result of damage to the brain during the first few months or years of life; brain infections such as bacterial meningitis or viral encephalitis, or head injury from an accident, a fall, or child abuse.
ABOUT EPILEPSY
Epilepsy is a disorder of the central nervous system. Triggered by abnormal bursts of electrical activity in the brain, epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder that causes repeated unprovoked seizures. These “seizures” are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal brain activity that may adversely affect muscle control, movement, speech, vision, or awareness, and while the seizure may not last very long, they can be very scary. Epilepsy is more likely to occur in young children or in people over the age of 65 and can occur at any time. Epilepsy is not a type of mental illness or retardation and generally has no adverse effect on how well the individual thinks or learns.
It is not a contagious disease and cannot be transferred from one individual to another, like a cold. Epileptic seizures may occur as the result of a head injury, brain tumor or infection, or a stroke. The fact is that many times doctors do not know what causes epilepsy and half of the people with epilepsy don’t even know the have it. The good news is treatments usually work in controlling or reducing the seizures, but epilepsy cannot be cured with medication and about a third of those with epilepsy do not respond favorably even with the best available medications. Not everyone who has seizures has epilepsy. Sometimes seizures are the result of an injury, illness, or other problem. In those cases the seizures usually cease when that problem improves or goes away.
