Cerebral palsy is a disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture that is caused by injury or abnormal development in the immature brain, most often before birth. In a simplistic way: Cerebral Palsy is a Motor Infirmity from Cerebral Origin.
Cerebral Palsy (CP) categories can be classified in 25 group-age categories using the universal GMFCS (Gross Motor Function Classification System). Compared to congenital and structural abnormalities, CP frequency of appearance is twice higher than that of Down Syndrom, it has the top 5 Congenital and Structural Diseases Occurrence, worldwide.
In few words, Cerebral Palsy is:
Chronic: Effects of CP are long term not temporary.
Incurable: CP is a damage to the brain that cannot be fixed.
Non Progressive: Result of a 1 time brain injury that will not further degenerate.
Permanent: Will not change for better or worse during a person lifetime, but associative conditions may improve or worsen over time.
Not Contagious: Brain damage is not spread through human contact.
Manageable: Treatment, therapy, surgery, medications & assistive technology can help maximize independence, increase inclusion.
Typical brain injuries or malformation are routed back to damage a child’s developing brain either before birth, during labor or after birth.
(Sources: http://www.mayoclinic.com /http://cerebralpalsy.org / http://www.scope.org.uk/)
In the MENA region, few centers were identified as providing specific treatment for CP patients. In 1990, The Order of Malta Lebanon established this specialized Educational and Therapeutic center focusing on CP children between 3 and 16 years of age. The facility is located at the heart of the Bhannes Hospital, a conglomerate of 8 pavilions operated by the Catholic Congregation of the Daughters of Charity.
This center can accommodate up to 100 children with Cerebral Motor deficiency. They are either day pupils or boarding pupils who receive a combination from both paramedical (physiotherapy, ergo therapy, psychomotricity, speech therapy) and scholastic departments (with tailored study programs on 6 different levels).
The long-term objective of this center is, whenever possible, to insert the children back into society where they can play an active role.
A fully equipped balneotherapy pool has been built by the Order of Malta Lebanon at the Pavillon St Vincent in the Bhannes Hospital to provide physical rehabilitation to those suffering from disabilities.
