Monoplegia

Guest

Hi finally seen a specialist after 4 months we were led to believe Oliver had Dipleiga even though we could only see problems with 1 leg, Today was told either dealing with Monoplegia or hemiplegia but again can't see any obvious problems with arms.

He is having an MRI scan still worried been diagnosed wrong and could be something else, The specailist does think it's CP but he is a rare case with no known cause which is why she wants the MRI done anyway.

He is also being put forward for Botox just wondered if there was anyone out the with Monoplegia

hfitz12

Hi finally seen a specialist after 4 months we were led to believe Oliver had Dipleiga even though we could only see problems with 1 leg, Today was told either dealing with Monoplegia or hemiplegia but again can't see any obvious problems with arms.

He is having an MRI scan still worried been diagnosed wrong and could be something else, The specailist does think it's CP but he is a rare case with no known cause which is why she wants the MRI done anyway.

He is also being put forward for Botox just wondered if there was anyone out the with Monoplegia

hfitz12

[quote name='Natalie H' date='Oct 13 2006, 09:23 AM' post='7225']

Hi thankyou for your response although if i'm honest even more worried after reading this, can i ask how old your son is and when you first noticed problems with his left leg? Sorry but always looking for people in simular situations hope you dont mind me asking.
Oliver has just turned 3 and to date can only see real issues with 1 leg, He sometimes tip toes on the right one though but only when he is tired and various proffesionals think that he is compensating for the left.
When i say about the cause i had no complications what so ever and he was only 2 weeks early they said that had something happened in prenancy or labor then they wouldn't need to do an MRI but if they do find scarring it will confirm CP that way althoughthey feel it will come back inconclusive.

Jay

Christopher appeared to just have a problem with his left leg at first. It was only as he was monitered more often that they decided he had left side hemiplegia, which then finally changed to triplegia (affecting his right leg as well). I thought CP was not supposed to change!!
I would not believe the specialist when he/she says there is no known cause for your son's CP. I would have a sneaky suspician that they have an idea of the cause and want to use the MRI to check the extent of the brain damage. Chrisopher's MRI's have always come back clear, although it is obvious that he has CP and I know the reason why (they won't admit it).
Hope you get some answers soon
Natalie

mafala

A friend of mine has a child with very severe athetoid CP and a completely normal MRI. They don't know what caused his brain injury, but it might have been something that happened while he was in the womb, so although the brain structure is normal, some cells of the brain could be abnormal. MRI's don't always give you a clear picture of what's going on and why it happened. I've heard of MRI's that show extensive brain injury, while the person seemingly functions very well. I think that only about 10%of CP is due to birth trauma, which means that a huge percentage is due to lots of other things including 'unknown' causes.

It's good news that Oliver has monoplegia rather than more involvement. It means that even if it turns out that his other leg is affected later on, it's so mild that he'll be able to function almost like any other little boy.

squirrell

"they said that had something happened in prenancy or labor then they wouldn't need to do an MRI"

Really?! I've never heard that before - it that right? I would've thought that with any brain damage no matter how or when sustained you'd have an MRI?

Guest

Hi
I found out this year that I have a diagnosis of diplegia on my records from the age of three days old, but somehow or other it got overlooked and I have been in ignorance until now. throughout my life however, I have always had a bad foot and leg (my left), and have had several operations to try and correct the problems of stiffness. However when the diagnosis was discovered, I was referred to physio where she actually told me that although my left leg was inflexible, my right leg was actually not as flexible as the norm, which really surprised me. As well as my legs I am actually weaker in my left arm than my right, which I have found can still come under the diplegia diagnosis. I have however led a relatively normal life, and although there have been things that I have been unable to do both as a child and an adult, I don't feel that I have been held back in anyway.

As a side note, I was born two weeks early with the use of forceps following my mum's waters breaking 5 days earlier, this they believe caused the cyanotic attacks where I fitted and stopped breathing which the doctors now believe to be the cause of my CP. As I am 34, they now don't have any hesitancy to admit to as from a legal standpoint I am above the age that I have been led to believe you can sue!!

Louise x

Jay

Sorry for making you even more worried - I really didn't mean to do that. We found out Christopher had a problem with his left leg when he was 22 months old. He was not walking at all, and only standing at furniture for a few seconds before falling down again. We went to a scheduled paediatrician appointment (due to his birth being 5 weeks early), and it was picked up on then. Hope this helps - any more questions feel free to post.
Natalie

mafala

Hi Charley

If the cause of the brain damage is already known there shouldn't be a need for an MRI. The MRI is just a diagnostic tool and an inacurate one at that. The picture you get on the MRI doesn't always coincide with the physical presentation of the child. If the physical presentation is enough to give a diagnosis there shouldn't be a need for an expensive and invasive procedure like an MRI. However, if there is uncertainty about the diagnosis, or there is a need to find the cause for the brain damage, then an MRI would help. So what they told tjsmith makes sense.

thara22

Hi

I'm with Mafala. My sister with SM has had a fairly normal life. Monoplegia is so mild that it should not stop him. My sister didn't let her disability hold her back. We didn't know till later on as she was full term and met milestones on time. As soon as we did though, she started physical therapy.