0161
Nuri M.Shembesh, Halom Elhashme Al-Fatah Children's Hospital, Benghazi, Libya This study conducted in Al-Fatah children
hospital and the handicap centre in Benghazi. Over a period of 1 Year (2000),
56 Libyan children diagnosed clinically as cerebral palsy, aged from 1
month up to 12 yrs, 29 (51.7%) females and 27 (48.2 %) male with male to
female ratio 0.9:1. The commonest age of presentation of our pts
was the Ist yr of the life, 31 patients (58.4%). The spastic quadriplegic C.palsy were the
commonest varity (67%), recorded in our C.P children, the prematurity
didnot count a significant proportion of our C.P cases and the gestational
age had no significant value in our studied children. The mental
retardation 24 (42.8%) and the epilepsy 23 (41%) are a common neurological
problems associated most commonly with the spastic quadriplegic variety. The brain MRI and CT scan were the most useful
diagnostic neuro-radiological investigations for evaluation of C.P
ptatients, while the skull x-ray and the brain ultrasound did not have any
dignostic or prognostic rules in our studied cases of cerebral palsy. In our study the cerebral palsy in our society
was found to be a preventable disease to some extent and the most common
causes of cerebral palsy were birth asphyxia in 26 patients (21.5 %)
infection in the first year of the life (NN sepsis, meningitis,
encephalitis and gastroentritis with hypernatremic dehydration which
constitute (10.7%) followed by NN jaundice (8.2 %) and only 8 pts. (14.3%)
had no underlying aetiological or risk factors can be identified. Early
detection of feto- placental malfunction with proper fetal monitoring and a
specific highly standard obsteteric care, early blood exchange, Preventing
Rhesus Immunization, adequate management of CNS infection and application
of Hib vaccination in our vaccine schedule well help in reduce the
incidence of the brain damage and cerebral palsy in the high risk children.
DEMOGRAPHY OF
C.PALSY IN NORTH EASTERN PART OF LIBYA