Sample Essay on Hypotonia
Hypotonia is a condition that exhibits a state of low muscle tone and involves reduced muscle strength. It is not a specific medical disorder, but a potential indication of many diseases that affect the motor nerve control by the brain or muscle strength. The development from childhood to adulthood of a hypotonia victim is depended on the severity of the muscle weakness and the nature of the cause.
Hypotonia is often detected in infants soon after birth or at a very young age, but it sometimes develops later in life. This condition is often noticeable by the time a child is six months old. The key cause of this condition lies in four different sites and they are in the central nervous system, peripheral motor and sensory nerves, and muscular junction and at the muscle itself.
Hypotonia is usually a symptom of another primary disorder and there are two types of this disorder. It can be congenital or acquired hypotonia. Congenital hypotonia is usually inherited or a genetic condition present at birth and affect he nerves, muscles and the brain. Some of the known genetic disorders that cause hypotonia include;
- Down syndrome
- Achondroplasia
- Autism spectrum disorder
- Canavan disease
- Centronuclar myopathy
- Cohen syndrome
- Dejerine Sottas syndrome
- Ehlers-Danlos syndrome
- Griscelli syndrome
- Krabbe disease
- Menkes syndrome
- Cerebellar ataxia
- Sensory processing disorder and
- Hypotonic cerebral palsy among others.
Acquired hypotonia involves those related conditions that develop after birth as a result of injury, trauma or underlying medical condition. They include;
- Muscular dystrophy
- Metachromatic leukodystrophy
- Spinal muscular atrophy
- Encephalitis
- Infant botulism
- Meningitis
- Infantile acrodynia
- Rickets
- Traumatic brain injury
- Lower or upper motor neuron lesions
- Sandifer syndrome and
- Hypothyroidism among others.
Hypotonia patients may display numerous signs and symptoms that will manifest decreased muscle tone. Motor skills delay is one of the often observed signs of hypotonia disorder. Hyperflexible joints, drooling, speech difficulties, poor reflexes, decreased activity tolerance, poor attention, rounded shoulder posture and leaning onto supports. The extent to this symptoms are manifested depend on age of the patient, severity of the disorder, the specific muscle that is affected and the primary cause of the disorder. In other cases, some people may experience constipation while other bowel complications.
The approach of diagnosing hypotonia is on first localization. The physician of choice must determine if the hypotonia is due to nerve, muscle or central etiology or other related conditions. If the cause is localized to muscles, then it can be classified as muscular dystrophy. If it is found to lie in the nerves, then it is due to polyneuropathy and cerebral palsy if it is localized in the brain. For the diagnosis to be successful it includes obtaining family medical history. A well-executed physical examination that includes computerized tomography [CT] scans, electroencephalogram [EEG] blood tests, genetic testing, magnetic resonance imaging [MRI] scans, spinal taps, nerve biopsy and electromyography muscle tests can also aid in the diagnosis.
Currently, there is no known cure for hypotonia. Understanding the primary disease causing hypotonia can aid find away on how to prevent further symptoms of the disorder. Specialists can also aid offer pediatric care and help the patient overcome the effects of condition. Here one can rely on developmental pediatricians, neurologists, geneticists, occupational therapists, pathologists and specialized nursing care.
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