Let's talk about something happy tonight. I passed my online class yesterday and I'm so proud of myself! My essay was liked by other students and got the passing grade.
My essay: I have cerebral palsy and people always ask me: "What is cerebral palsy?" They want to learn more about it and I want to give people more of an in-depth answer because it‘s part of my life and I want to teach people about this condition. People should be educated about it. Like Francis Bacon once said, "Knowledge is power." In this course, I learned the scientific aspects of my condition so I could explain it much better.
Once all the neurons are made and the brain structure is complete, development still is not over because the nervous system has to get the physiology correct. It has to make sure that the right neurons are talking to the right audiences. The general way that the nervous system does this is to make lots and lots of connections and then prune them back. It makes a lot, decides which ones are good, strengthens those and let the weaker and the less useful ones die back. This is called synaptic pruning.
There are several diseases where a disorder of synaptic pruning does not occur normally and that produces a dysfunction or condition. One is cerebral palsy. Cerebral palsy or CP is a condition caused by brain damage during development, or during or around the time of birth. The cause might be damage to the motor cortex, the vassal ganglia, or the cerebellum. It depends on the type of CP.
In normal individuals, this same side input starts to die back during development. By the time the child is out of being a toddler, this is now retreated and is no longer. This motoneuron is getting one input instead of two inputs. It started with two but there's a synaptic pruning so now it only listens to one. It only listening to the correct side but in one type called spastic cerebral palsy, which is caused by damage to the motor cortex, what happens is that these motoneurons receive input from neurons in both sides and it never goes away.
In an adult with cerebral palsy, the motoneurons are getting input from both sides of the cortex. The result is that the circuits down in the spinal cord and even the muscles change their properties and there are enduring permanent changes that occur in motor function.
CP affects muscle control in the limbs and other motor skills. There are different degrees in severity and CP is divided into three classifications. Spastic CP is the most common type. Spasticity relates to poor movement of the muscles.
Spastic hemiplegia is when one side of the body is affected. Injury to the muscle-nerves controlled by the left side of the brain will cause a right body defect and vice versa. There are many different brain dysfunctions that can account for the cause for spastic hemiplegia. Spastic hemiplegia occurs either at birth or in the womb. The cause can be all types of strokes, head injuries, hereditary diseases, brain injuries and infections. Usually, people with spastic hemiplegia can still walk, although they generally have dynamic equinus, a condition that causes limited upward bending in the ankle. To prevent equinus, doctors prescribe ankle-foot orthotic braces.
Spastic diplegia is when the lower extremities affected with little to no upper-body spasticity. Spastic diplegia's particular type of brain damage inhibits the proper development of upper motor neuron function, impacting the motor cortex, the basal ganglia and the corticospinal tract. This is most common form of spastic CP. Most people with spastic diplegia can walk and have a scissors gait. Flexed knees and hips to certain degrees are common. In three-quarters of people with deiplegia can also have strabismus (crossed eyes) and these individuals are often nearsighted.
Spastic quadriplegia, which is generally caused by brain damage or disruptions in normal brain development preceding birth, is when all four limbs affected equally. According to the National Institutes of Health, there are four types of brain damage that can cause spastic quadriplegia. These include, damage to the white matter (periventricular leukomalacia), abnormal brain development (cerebral dysgenesis), bleeding in the brain (intracranial hemorrhage), and brain damage due to lack of oxygen (hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy or intrapartum asphyxia). People with spastic quadriplegia are the least likely to be able to walk because their muscles are too tight. Some with quadriplegia also have hemiparetic tremors, an uncontrollable shaking that affects the limbs on one side of the body and impairs typical movements. Speech problems are associated with spasticity as well, along with poor respiratory control and restricted movement in the oral-facial muscles.
I have spastic quadriplegia. I use a wheelchair, all of my limbs are extremely tight, I have arm tremors, and my speech is very slurred. I was diagnosed when I was a toddler and I've been getting medical assitance, such as medicine, surgeries, and physical therapy. My condition sometimes frustrates me but I don't let it run my entire life. I have a saying: "There's no such thing as disability, only different ways of living." Even though my movements are limited, I'm still able to live life my own way.
Secondary conditions of CP can include seizures, eating problems, sensory and mental impairments, learning disabilities, and/ or behavior disorders. Although these secondary symptoms are common, not everyone have them. Everyone is different. The most often misconception about people with CP is that they are less intelligent than those born without CP. CP is defined as damage to the part of brain that controls movement, not areas of the brain that controls a person's intelligence. I think that people should learn about all disabilities, including cerebral palsy. People should be open-minded. Knowledge could be closer to cures.
Resources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spastic_cerebral_palsy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spastic_diplegia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spastic_quadriplegia
https://www.coursera.org/learn/neurobiology/lecture/9OPxx/cerebral-palsy
Smooches and think Tink!
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