Cerebral palsy nursing

Cerebral palsy is the name given to disorder that is characterized by impaired posture and movement. This condition is non-progressive and accompanied by language problems, intellectual involvement and perceptual deficits.

Causes

There are many causes for cerebral palsy .few is mentioned here. Developmental disorder of the brain or injury to the brain or imbalance of acid base balance or hyper bilirubinemia or metabolic disorder or fetal hypoxia and asphyxia are some of the possible causes for cerebral palsy.

Nursing cerebral palsy child

The cerebral palsy cannot be cured. The patients are treated to reduce the symptoms like Spasticity, contraction, pain etc. however caring or nursing the child at home is very important as far as cerebral palsy is concerned. Here are few suggestions regarding the same.

Dental caries prevention

You need to teach the child the correct way or technique of brushing. It is better to ask the child brush two times a day. Find out any loose teeth and consult dentist if there is any loose teeth. You need the feed the child with food that is rich in calcium.

Oral hygiene maintenance

You need to make the child to rinse the mouth with water after each meal. It is better to avoid sweets especially after brushing. You need to examine the child's mouth on daily basis for any oral infections and bleeding of gums.

Feeding and eating problems and its management

You have to first assess what kind of problem the child is having. Some child will have difficulty in swallowing while some other child will have problem in sucking. The child may have bite reflex [persistent]. some children may have gag reflex [hyperactive].

Some children will find it difficult to control the tongue and lip movement. Some other children may have palate that is arched high. Some child may have chewing difficulties. Some other children may find difficulty in moving the hand towards mouth while self feeding.

For these children you need to feed them based on their calorie requirement. You need provide the oral care on regular basis i.e. once in a week or one in fifteen days. Offer the child the meal that the child can consume or like.

The food server should be in a very attractive manner. The food must be very hygienic. Provide the child sufficient time to eat. If there any stress while eating try reducing the stress as much as possible. Maintaining the input -output chart is also helpful.

Safety related support

You need to teach the child to obey the traffic rules. It is better to provide them helmet while they are playing. You need to give the toys that are harmless and appropriate to the age of the child.

You have to keep the sharp objects away from the reach of the child. The furniture place in the Childs room should not have sharp edges. The electrical connections and electrical points should never be within the reach of the child.

By following the above mentioned suggestion you can nurse the child with cerebral palsy with ease and effectively.

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