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Cerebral Palsy News
Robotic Device May Help Gait in Kids With Cerebral Palsy
Posted 26 Jul 2017 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, July 26, 2017 – A robotic training device helped improve the walking ability of children with cerebral palsy who suffer from a condition known as "crouch gait," a small study found. The device provided strength training for muscles that were too weak to support fully upright posture, explained senior researcher Sunil Agrawal. He is a professor of rehabilitation and regenerative medicine and mechanical engineering at the Columbia University School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. "Children improved their posture, their walking speed, their balance, as well as the symmetry of their walking, through this approach," Agrawal said. Crouch gait is an abnormality caused by a type of cerebral palsy called spastic diplegia. In spastic diplegia, stiff muscles in both legs hamper the normal give-and-take of walking, preventing a normal stride. Human movement relies on two sets of ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy, Foot Care
Obesity in Pregnancy Tied to Cerebral Palsy Risk in Kids
Posted 7 Mar 2017 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, March 7, 2017 – Women who are overweight or obese during pregnancy may be increasing the chances that their baby could be born with cerebral palsy, a new study suggests. Researchers looked at information on more than 1 million children born to Swedish women who were followed for nearly eight years. "The overall risk of cerebral palsy was about 2 cases per 1,000 babies born," said lead researcher Dr. Eduardo Villamor, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. "Women with the most severe forms of obesity who have babies born at full term may have about twice that risk." Moreover, the prevalence of cerebral palsy has increased in children born at full term, he noted. However, Villamor stressed that the study findings only show an association between a woman's weight during pregnancy and the risk of cerebral palsy, not that maternal obesity causes the ... Read more
Related support groups: Birth Control, Contraception, Obesity, Weight Loss, Cerebral Palsy, Vitamin/Mineral Supplementation during Pregnancy/Lactation
Scientists Create Clothing With 'Knitted' Muscle Power
Posted 26 Jan 2017 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Jan. 26, 2017 – Scientists say they've created a special fabric incorporating robotic techniques that one day might help provide muscle power to disabled people or seniors who have trouble getting around. The Swedish team coated normal fabric with an electroactive material, enabling the fabric to respond to low voltage power. Electroactive means the material responds to electricity. This technology could lead to the creation of "textile muscles" that could be used in clothing to help people with mobility problems. The researchers used this approach in a simple robotic device to lift a small weight, according to the study. "Enormous and impressive advances have been made in the development of exoskeletons, which now enable people with disabilities to walk again. But the existing technology looks like rigid robotic suits," said study researcher Edwin Jager, an associate ... Read more
Related support groups: Muscle Spasm, Muscle Pain, Muscle Twitching, Frozen Shoulder, Cerebral Palsy, History of Musculoskeletal Disorder, Family History of Musculoskeletal Disorder
US Families Spend 1.5 Billion Hours Yearly on Kids With Special Health Needs
Posted 27 Dec 2016 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Dec. 27, 2016 – Families in the United States spend 1.5 billion hours each year providing home health care to their chronically ill or disabled children, a new study shows. The hours of health care these parents and other family members provide would cost $36 billion if performed by home health workers who received the going rate – or $12 billion if unskilled workers receiving minimum wage were hired, said senior researcher Dr. Mark Schuster. Parents of chronically ill children are asked these days to provide "the kind of care that, if they weren't there, the system would have to provide home health care or keep the children in the hospital longer," said Schuster, chief of general pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital. He's also a professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. These time-consuming and sometimes technical health care tasks can include maintaining ... Read more
Related support groups: Seizures, Seizure Prevention, Head Injury, Muscular Dystrophy, Cystic Fibrosis, Seizure Prophylaxis, Cerebral Palsy, Head Injury with Intracranial Hemorrhage, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Head Injury w/ Intracranial Hemorrhage and Loss of Consciousness, Cystic Fibrosis with Ileus, Myotonia Congenita, Head Injury with Loss of Consciousness
Excess Pre-Pregnancy Weight May Slightly Raise Baby's Cerebral Palsy Risk
Posted 8 Sep 2016 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Sept. 8, 2016 – Some women who are overweight or obese before pregnancy may face a slight increased risk of having a baby with cerebral palsy, a new study suggests. After reviewing data from two Nordic countries, researchers also found that the risk of cerebral palsy was elevated in infants whose mothers' pre-pregnancy weight was in the upper-normal range. But experts stressed that the overall risks of having a baby with cerebral palsy (CP) remain very small, even among women carrying excess weight. "Even though an increased risk for overweight women of 60 percent seems high, the risk of having a baby with CP is still very low," said study author Ingeborg Forthun, a doctoral student at University of Bergen in Norway. It's also important to note that this study only proved an association between mothers' pre-pregnancy weight and CP, not a cause-and-effect relationship. ... Read more
Related support groups: Birth Control, Contraception, Obesity, Cerebral Palsy, Vitamin/Mineral Supplementation during Pregnancy/Lactation
Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. Announces FDA Approval of Dysport (abobotulinumtoxinA) for the Treatment of Lower Limb Spasticity in Pediatric Patients Aged Two and Older
Posted 2 Aug 2016 by Drugs.com
BASKING RIDGE, N.J., Aug. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ – Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., a subsidiary of Ipsen SA (Euronext: IPN; ADR: IPSEY) (Ipsen), today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) for Dysport® (abobotulinumtoxinA) for injection for the treatment of lower limb spasticity in pediatric patients two years of age and older. Dysport® is the first and only FDA-approved botulinum toxin for the treatment of pediatric lower limb spasticity. Those treated with Dysport® showed statistically significant improvement in co-primary efficacy assessments: mean change from baseline in Modified Ashworth scale (MAS) in ankle plantar flexor muscle tone and mean Physician's Global Assessment (PGA) response to treatment score at Week 4 and Week 12. A majority of patients in the clinical study were eligible for re ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy, Spasticity, Dysport, Lower Limb Spasticity, Spinal Spasticity, Abobotulinumtoxina
Extreme 'Preemies' Often Have Lifelong Challenges
Posted 23 May 2016 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, May 23, 2016 – Extremely premature infants often face lifelong challenges, enduring more physical, emotional and social difficulties as adults than their peers born full-term, researchers report. In general, however, these tiny babies grow up to contribute to society and live independently, a study of nearly 200 adults in Canada has found. Still, researchers found those born very prematurely were more likely to be unemployed, earn less and have chronic health problems compared to those born full-term. A higher proportion were single, said they'd never had sex, and tended to engage in fewer risky behaviors. "Most of these differences were accounted for because they had neurological impairments like cerebral palsy and blindness," said lead researcher Dr. Saroj Saigal, a professor of pediatrics at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. If you exclude the 20 percent with ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy, Premature Labor, Apnea of Prematurity, Prematurity/Underweight in Infancy, Visual Defect/Disturbance
CDC: Child Autism Rate Now 1 in 45 After Survey Method Changes
Posted 13 Nov 2015 by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, Nov. 13, 2015 – About one in 45 children has an autism spectrum disorder, according to a new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey of parents. This apparent increase is likely due to a change of questions parents were asked about their child, the study authors said. "Probably the most important finding of this paper, which is hardly new, is that how one asks a question matters," said Dr. Glen Elliott, chief psychiatrist and medical director of Children's Health Council in Palo Alto, Calif. "The CDC spends considerable time appropriately emphasizing that the total number of individuals in the three categories covered – intellectual disability, autism spectrum disorders and developmental disability – has not changed," Elliott explained. He added that what did change was the distribution among those groups. The findings were published Nov. 13 in the CDC's ... Read more
Related support groups: Down Syndrome, Autism, Asperger Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Trisomy 18
Though Rare, Some Disabilities Seen Long After Newborn Heart Surgery
Posted 21 Sep 2015 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Sept. 21, 2015 – Some newborns who undergo complex heart surgery may be more likely to have neurological or motor disabilities – such as cerebral palsy – as they grow older, a new study suggests. However, one pediatric surgeon not involved with the study said such complications were relatively rare. The Canadian study authors said that it's not necessarily the surgeries that might have led to the disabilities. Instead, a likely reason for later trouble is that the children's hearts pumped too little oxygen to the body and brain before the surgery, the authors suggested. "This article highlights the frequent occurrence of chronic neuromotor disability in patients who had complex cardiac surgery and the importance of early and aggressive testing of patients at risk, including prenatal testing to identify a fetus with complex congenital cardiac defects," said Dr. Irving Shen. A ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy, Hydrocephalus, Cardiovascular Conditions and Disorders, Brain Anomalies incl Congenital, Cardiothoracic Surgery
Lip Injections May Ease Challenges of Facial Paralysis
Posted 18 Jun 2015 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, June 18, 2015 – People with facial paralysis may benefit from cosmetic lip surgery, a preliminary study finds. Facial paralysis is "a very large problem that can occur because of stroke, Bell's palsy, muscular dystrophy, trauma and birth defects," Dr. Kofi Boahene, a facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, said in a university news release. Poor lip control caused by facial paralysis can cause drooling, spillage of food and drink, and difficulty making sounds that require fully closing the lips, such as the letters "b" and "p." Many of these people are also self-conscious about their appearance, Boahene said. He and his colleagues worked with 22 people who had facial paralysis on one side of the mouth and three people with muscular dystrophy who had lost control of both sides of the mouth. The patients were given ... Read more
Related support groups: Ischemic Stroke, Muscular Dystrophy, Cerebral Palsy, Intracranial Hemorrhage, Paralytic Disorder, Facial Lipoatrophy
Too Few Kids With Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy Get Flu Shot: Study
Posted 10 Apr 2015 by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, April 10, 2015 – Children with neurological disorders such as epilepsy or cerebral palsy are at increased risk for complications from the flu, but are no more likely to receive a flu shot than other kids are, a new U.S. study shows. It's possible that many doctors don't know that some of these disorders put children at increased risk for flu-related complications, the researchers said. "Our research shows that influenza vaccination in children with [neurological disorders] is comparable to vaccination in healthy children – but both rates are suboptimal," study author Dr. Michael Smith, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at the University of Louisville, said in a university news release. "More education about the need for annual influenza vaccination is needed, both for parents and health care providers," he added. The researchers conducted a nationwide survey of more ... Read more
Related support groups: Seizures, Influenza, Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy, Influenza Prophylaxis, Vaccination and Prophlaxis
Teens With Cerebral Palsy Report High Quality of Life in Survey
Posted 7 Oct 2014 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Oct. 7, 2014 – Teens with cerebral palsy are just as happy with their lives as teens without the physical disability, a new survey shows. Despite facing numerous challenges, young people with cerebral palsy report having better attitudes about key aspects of their lives than teens who do not have the neurological disorder that impairs movement and motor ability. The British researchers did find that high levels of pain, parental stress and a lack of social support can take a toll, however. The findings challenge "the widespread perception that adolescents with disabilities have unhappy, unfulfilled lives," wrote study author Allan Colver, a professor of community child health at Newcastle University in England. The study, published Oct. 6 in The Lancet, involved 431 teens between the ages of 13 and 17 with cerebral palsy from nine regions of Europe. The adolescents completed a ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy
Genes May Raise Risk of Cerebral Palsy, Study Finds
Posted 15 Jul 2014 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, July 15, 2014 – New research suggests that genes may play a role in cerebral palsy, the most common cause of physical disability in children. Previous research has identified several pregnancy-related risk factors, including preterm delivery, abnormal growth, exposure to infection and lack of oxygen at birth. A possible family link with cerebral palsy has also been found, but not confirmed. Cerebral palsy affects your ability to move, and alters your balance and posture. In this study, researchers analyzed data from more than 2 million births in Norway between 1967 and 2002. They identified more than 3,600 cases of cerebral palsy, or 1.8 cases for every 1,000 children born during that period. The rate was higher among twins (5.1 per 1,000 children) than among single children (1.7 per 1,000 children). If one twin had cerebral palsy, the other twin had a 15 times increased risk ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy
Scientists Shed New Light on Cerebral Palsy, Early Infant Death
Posted 9 Sep 2013 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Sept. 9 – Researchers say they've pinpointed risk factors that contribute to cerebral palsy and early infant death. The U.S. and Australian researchers compared the medical records of children with cerebral palsy and infants who died within one month of birth with the records of healthy children to determine how often four risk factors occurred in each group. The risk factors included asphyxial birth events – incidents during labor and delivery that had the potential to interfere with oxygen getting to the newborn's brain. The other risk factors were inflammation (signs of infection), birth defects and poor fetal growth, which was defined as low birth weight plus some other factors related to expected size. Birth defects and poor fetal growth were the most common risk factors among the cases of cerebral palsy and early infant death, said Dr. Karin Nelson, scientist emeritus at ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy
Pregnancy Problem, Smaller Babies Tied to Cerebral Palsy Risk in Study
Posted 10 Jul 2013 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, July 10 – Premature and small babies born to mothers who had preeclampsia during pregnancy are at increased risk for cerebral palsy, but there is no added risk for full-term babies who are normal size, according to a new study. Preeclampsia is a dangerous condition involving high blood pressure and protein in the urine. It affects 3 percent to 5 percent of pregnant women. Researchers analyzed data from about 850 children with cerebral palsy and more than 616,000 children without the neurological disorder who were born in Norway between 1996 and 2006, for the study appearing online July 9 in the journal BMJ. Children who were both born moderately preterm (between 32 and 36 weeks) or very preterm (less than 31 weeks) and whose mothers had preeclampsia had a significantly increased risk of cerebral palsy, if they were also smaller than usual at birth. Babies who were born at ... Read more
Related support groups: Cerebral Palsy, Toxemia of pregnancy
