Elijah is now the owner and wearer of AFO's (ankle foot orthotics) I hope these will help him walk independently. As most of you know he had been diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. It is hard to say what caused his CP. I do know that TTTS survivors are at high risk for neurological conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, I have seen statistics that say half of all TTTS survivors are diagnosed with CP. Elijah was also extremely premature, this is a risk factor for Cerebral Palsy, and even though Elijah's brain scans in the NICU were normal,this does not indicate that a brain injury didn't occur.
"Nearly one half of all preemies who develop cerebral palsy have normal NICU ultrasounds"
Some early warning signs of CP (for all babies, multiples, preemies, and babies that are full term) are:
- Problems sucking and swallowing.
- A weak or shrill cry.
- Unusual positions. Often the body is either very relaxed and floppy or very stiff. When held, babies may arch their backs and extend their arms and legs. These postures are different from and more extreme than those that sometimes occur in babies with colic.
- Seizures.
One thing I noticed when Elijah was a infant was that it was often difficult to change his diaper. His legs were stiff making diaper changes hard.
Pictures of Elijahs little AFO's will be posted soon :)
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