
Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral palsy refers to a very variable clinical picture that can exist for many reasons. It must have developed before the first birthday, but the most common causes are prenatal or so-called peripartum, i.e. damage to the brain that occurred "around birth".
Cerebral palsy is named after the always existing partial paralysis or paresis, which can present itself clinically in different ways. A distinction is made between spastic, dystonic and ataxic cerebral palsies, and often there are mixed pictures. The classification of the degree of severity into five levels is usually done using the so-called GMFCS (Gross Motor Function Classification System).
The treatment of cerebral palsy is a multimodal developmental concept that includes functional therapies, the use of various medications, the provision of assistive devices, possible orthopaedic corrective surgery (see also neuroorthopaedics) and other individual measures. At the Children`s Hospital Schömberg, we carry out inpatient treatments that take all these aspects into account. The majority of our patients are so severely affected that they cannot walk freely. Often there are other medical reasons for treatment, for example epilepsy, behavioural problems or pain.
Several drug treatment options are available, especially for spasticity. In contrast, dystonia and ataxia can unfortunately only rarely be influenced favourably and sustainably with medication.
In addition, many medicines lack marketing authorisation in childhood. Nevertheless, in the absence of alternatives, an individual curative trial, which may be conducted under inpatient conditions, may be justified.