When to register
- the child lags behind age-related skills: does not hold his head up, does not sit down, does not walk, does not speak;
- increased or decreased muscle tone, asymmetry of movements, walking on toes;
- delayed speech development, the child does not respond to his name, does not fulfill simple requests;
- seizures, freezing, twitching, convulsions - including against the background of temperature;
- tics, obsessive movements, stuttering;
- headaches, dizziness, fainting in a school-age child;
- sleep disturbances, excessive excitability, difficulty concentrating;
- consequences of perinatal damage to the central nervous system, prematurity - routine monitoring.
The inspection is more important than the photograph
A child’s diagnosis is most often made by examination and the dynamics of skills, and not by a picture. Neurosonography and MRI answer the doctor’s specific question, but in themselves do not explain why the child does not speak or walks on his toes. Therefore, the technique begins with a detailed analysis of the history of development: what the child could do at 3, 6, 9 months, when the first words appeared, how behavior changed. The more accurately the parent remembers the deadlines, the shorter the path to the answer.
What happens after the appointment
Three scenarios are possible. The first is a variant of the norm: the doctor explains why the anxiety is excessive and names the timing of control. The second is observation with a home program: gymnastics, regimen, classes, re-examination at the appointed time. The third is additional examination and treatment: EEG during attacks, ENMG for weakness and sensory disturbances, involvement of a speech pathologist, neuropsychologist, and exercise therapy courses. The earlier the work begins, the more opportunities the developing brain has.
