Question

My child speaks a bit later than others and doesn’t speak as fluently, making it difficult for them to communicate. We’ve visited the hospital, taken many medications, and undergone treatment for a long time, but there has been no improvement. I’m extremely worried. I’ve heard that this condition has a high mortality rate, and I’m really scared.

Answer

Cerebral palsy typically refers to non-progressive brain damage or brain developmental abnormalities caused by various reasons from birth to one month after birth, leading to a central nervous system disorder. Clinically, it is characterized by abnormal posture and muscle tone, muscle weakness, involuntary movements, and ataxia. It often accompanies sensory, cognitive, communication, and behavioral disorders as well as secondary skeletal muscle abnormalities, and may also include epilepsy seizures. Aggressive treatment aims to minimize the degree of intellectual disability in children. Some children have intellectual disabilities due to congenital development of certain organs, while others may be caused by certain diseases such as heart disease, encephalitis, difficult labor, or possibly due to malnutrition, lack of normal environmental stimulation, and other factors.