How to care for cerebral palsy

Children with cerebral palsy have motor deficits, abnormal posture, and in some cases, combined auditory, visual, cognitive, language deficits, and swallowing disorders. Care is divided into the following aspects: the first aspect is the posture management of the child with cerebral palsy. For example, the correct holding method for children with spastic cerebral palsy is to hold the child’s buttocks with one hand, hold the back of the shoulder with the other hand, hold the head upright and face towards oneself in the arms, and separate the legs on both sides of the waist, which can serve the purpose of relieving the spasm of the internal retractor muscle. The method of holding for children with non-random-motion cerebral palsy is to hold the child in a ball position, so that the child can maintain the stability and symmetry of posture and position. The correct prone position, usually lateral, is also maintained and is suitable for all types of cerebral palsy, especially for children with asymmetrical tension neck reflexes. The prone position is suitable for training head control and promoting head lifting in children with cerebral palsy. A correct sitting posture should also be maintained. The sitting position should keep the spine straight to avoid and reduce spinal retroversion and scoliosis. There is also the need to maintain a correct kneeling posture and a correct standing posture. The second aspect is the training of activities of daily living for children with cerebral palsy. We will assess the child’s ability to perform activities of daily living, understand the child’s functional status and parents’ expectations for rehabilitation treatment, determine the treatment goals, develop a daily living training plan, and select activities of daily living that meet the child’s needs. The third aspect is chewing and swallowing. The choice of food should be gradually transitioned from liquid, semi-liquid, soft food to solid food. Nasal feeding should be used for those who are unable to swallow on their own. When feeding, attention should be paid to the child’s feeding posture, following the principle of suppressing abnormal posture and symmetry on both sides of the body. Swallowing training helps the child to do passive opening, closing the jaw joint, closing the lips, showing teeth, pouting, puffing, chewing, etc. Assisting the child to try his best to extend the tongue outward can treat chewing and swallowing disorder. The fourth aspect is the clean care of infection. Strengthen infection prevention and control in hospital and daily care to reduce the occurrence of infection. Pressure sores should be prevented in children who are bedridden for a long time. The fifth aspect is the dressing and undressing of children with cerebral palsy. Dressing and undressing should be broken down gradually and in a gradual manner. The sixth aspect is to prevent rickets, daily vitamin D supplementation and more sunshine should be taken to help prevent fractures. The seventh aspect is the problem of excretion, which can be done by using massage therapy or by allowing the affected child to consume enough water. A proper diet structure and exercise can improve constipation and prevent urinary tract infections.