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Program spotlight:

Cerebral Palsy Program

Children’s Hospital Boston’s Cerebral Palsy Program provides interdisciplinary evaluation and treatment of children with cerebral palsy and other neuromuscular disabilities.

Program basics

Cerebral palsy (CP) occurs when there is injury to the developing brain; children with it can present with abnormal muscle tone or difficulty with coordination, balance, posture and movement. The CP team offers family-centric care with an emphasis on maximizing quality of life.

Hirschhorn

Symptoms

CP can look very different from child to child. With diplegia, only the legs are involved, with hemiplegia only the left or right side is involved and with quadriplegia both upper and lower extremities are involved. The child may also present with spasticity, ataxia, dyskinesia or dystonia.

Conditions treated

The CP Program treats 1,800 patients each year with a range of conditions, including CP, progressive neuromuscular conditions, congenital anomalies, muscle tendon contractures, skeletal deformity and deformities of the spine, hip, knee, ankle and foot.

Associated conditions

Children with CP often cannot exercise or stretch their muscles, which can lead to poor muscle and bone growth. Weakened and unbalanced muscles do not adequately support the bone and joint structures causing secondary conditions like scoliosis, hip dislocation and foot and ankle deformities. Secondary conditions can be prevented or treated by managing spasticity.

Orthopedic management

Often, children with CP have medical conditions in addition to their orthopedic issues, such as developmental delays, feeding and swallowing disorders, seizure disorders, gastroesophageal reflux, constipation, poor nutrition, aspiration, drooling, asthma, airway difficulties, difficulty with urination, visual impairment, hearing loss and communication impairment.

Treatment

  • Physical therapy helps achieve motor function and mobility
  • Occupational therapy improves function and independence
  • Special braces and orthotics control joint deformities, stretch contracted muscles and support weak muscles
  • Surgical lengthening helps if contractures are severe or are causing problems with movement, balance and coordination

Gait Laboratory

To assess walking problems, an evaluation in the Gait Laboratory is available by referral. At this evaluation, children walk in front of a special high-speed camera that records muscle activity with each step. This information is then processed and studied by our team to determine the best treatment.

When to refer

New patients are evaluated to determine the range of medical issues and developmental abilities. Depending on a child’s need, and in consultation with the family and primary physician, referrals are generated to our subspecialists. When possible, appointments with multiple specialists are coordinated on the same day.

Meet the Team

Laurie

Laurie Glader, MD, pediatrics, complex care service

 

 

 


Travis

Travis Matheney, MD, MLA, hip and lower extremity conditions

 

 

 


Donna

Donna Nimec, MD, physical medicine

 

 

 


Robert

Robert Rosenthal, MD, orthopedic care and surgery

 

 

 


Brian

Brian Snyder, MD, PhD, cerebral palsy, pediatric orthopedics, spinal deformity and trauma

 

 

 


Seymour

Seymour Zimbler, MD, cerebral palsy and pediatric orthopedics

 

 

 

More information: childrenshospital.org/cp

 

 
 
 

About Cerebral palsy

Children’s Gait Laboratory

Video: The Augmentative Communication Program and Cerebral Palsy patients

 

   

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