Ataxic Cerebral Palsy Treatment in India, Nepal, Bangladesh

What Is Ataxic Cerebral Palsy?

Ataxic cerebral palsy is a rare variety of cerebral palsy (5-10%). Ataxic cerebral palsy is a type of cerebral palsy in which balance, coordination & depth perception is disturbed. This means, there is no coordination in walking and a person walks like a person with a drunken gait / unsteady gait?

It is less common than other types of cerebral palsy. All the movements are affected by abnormal forces, lack of accuracy & rhythm. A tone in muscle is also very less in these children. Fine & gross motor activity both in the upper & lower limbs is disturbed. Ataxia cerebral palsy affects the muscle of the leg, arm, hand, finger, eye & oral cavity. 

What Causes Ataxic Cerebral Palsy?

It occurs because of malformation or insult to the cerebellum. In 50% of cases, it is an autosomal recessive trait and in others, it is acquired by meningitis & head injury. The cerebellum is responsible for maintaining balance and coordination in the body.  The function of the cerebellum is to maintain balance, posture, coordinate voluntary movement, helps in learning motor skills & speech articulation.

What Are The Signs & Symptoms Of Ataxic Cerebral Palsy?

In this variety, the body becomes very much unstable. Gait is unsteady, jerky & disorganized. Frequent fall is very common and sometimes by mistake, their gait pattern is perceived as they are under the influence of alcohol. Most of the time, they walk in broad gait. Persons in this problem feel very difficult to accomplish any task because of increasing unsteadiness & intention tremor in reaching to complete the task. They always feel difficulty in repetitive & quick movement in the right direction.

These children can also have a problem in writing, speech & deglutition. An individual can also have scanning speech which contains a monotonous voice along with pause & acceleration while talking.

They have problems in fine motor activities like fastening buttons and shoelaces, writing, uncontrollable shaking of hands during specific work performance. Mostly they have normal intelligence. Nystagmus and other eye movements can also be affected.

How Is Ataxic Cerebral Palsy Diagnosed?

Since the child starts walking after one year of age. Activities related to body coordination and balance become more profound after 1 year of age so it is difficult to diagnose before age 12 months. Usually, diagnosis of ataxic cerebral palsy is done after 4 years of age.

CT scan/ MRI brain helps us in localizing the site of the lesion, confirming diagnosis & rule out other causes of ataxia. Some time genetic analysis is required to see inheritance and specify the differential diagnosis.

How Is Ataxic Cerebral Palsy Treated?

It is very difficult to treat Ataxic CP Child. Ataxia is going to persist for the whole life. Physiotherapy is the mainstay in treatment but in a different way to treat them.  Our focus in these people is to improve balance, coordination, strengthening of muscle.

These children can be benefitted by using relaxation exercise, yoga, task-oriented & strength training exercise, speech therapy, occupational therapy & brace. Medicine has a very limited role in treating Ataxic Cerebral Palsy. Braces are helpful in ambulating these children and Occupational cerebral palsy therapy is required for achieving skills of activity of daily life. Yoga & relaxation exercises help in calming the child which helps in easing up task performance. Surgery is usually not required.

Ataxic Cerebral Palsy FAQ’s

1. Is ataxic cerebral palsy progressive?

Ataxic Cerebral palsy is a non-progressive condition, it means that it will not get worse over time, but it can take a toll on a person's body that will present additional challenges over time.

2. Is ataxic cerebral palsy hereditary?

Ataxic cerebral palsy has the highest genetic component of all the sub-types of cerebral palsy, and it is estimated that almost 50% of ataxic cerebral palsy is inherited in an autosomal recessive manner.

3. Is ataxic a type of cerebral palsy?

Children with cerebral palsy have it for life. Ataxic Cerebral Palsy is one type of CP. Kids with ataxic cerebral palsy have difficulty with balance.

4. What are the 3 main types of Cerebral palsy?

There are various different types of cerebral palsy — Spastic CP, Ataxic CP, Athetoid CP, Hypotonic CP, and Mixed CP.

Click to know more about:

• Cerebral Palsy Definition
• Cerebral Palsy Types
• Cerebral Palsy Surgery
• Cerebral Palsy Diagnosis
• Cerebral Palsy Success Stories
• Pediatric Disabilities Treatment

Child Affected with Ataxic Cerebral Palsy Can Also Walk – Check Video

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Reference Sources:

1. https://www.cerebralpalsyguidance.com/cerebral-palsy/types/ataxic/
2. http://cerebralpalsygroup.com/cerebral-palsy/ataxic/
3. https://www.cerebralpalsyguide.com/cerebral-palsy/types/ataxic/
4. https://cerebralpalsy.org.au/our-research/about-cerebral-palsy/what-is-cerebral-palsy/types-of-cerebral-palsy/ataxic-cerebral-palsy/