Minimal cerebral dysfunction - causes and treatment

Minimal brain dysfunction is a neuropsychic disorder that results from a mild CNS lesion. These disorders are due to the course of pregnancy and childbirth, as well as various kinds of infections and lack of care during infancy.

The picture of disturbances with minimal brain dysfunction is very diverse and varies with age, as a rule, its manifestations increase to the younger school age. Minimal cerebral dysfunction in children can affect the appearance in the change in the structure of the facial bones of the skull, in the incorrect formation of the skeleton of the oral cavity, asthenia of the muscles of the tongue, which can lead to problems of speech development. Possible violations of muscle tone, the presence of pathological reflexes. From vegetative reactions there is increased sweating, drooling. Children with minimal brain dysfunction are characterized by motor disinhibition, hyperactivity, they are prone to frequent mood changes. Psychologists working with children, in whose anamnesis there is a record of "minimal brain dysfunction," note the presence of such children with autoaggression, susceptibility to anger, rage. Among the psychological violations should be noted social immaturity, which is expressed in the desire to play and communicate with younger children. Such children are characterized by disturbances in the process of falling asleep and sleep: sleep is shallow, intermittent, in a dream, children can scream. As already noted above, children with MMD have problems with schooling (one is difficult to "give" computational actions, others have problems with error-free writing, others have disrupted spatial orientation).

Variants of the disorder with minimal brain dysfunction:

• Minimal brain dysfunction with hyperactivity due to attention deficit. Such children are characterized by a high threshold of excitability, impulsivity. They are distinguished by a high level of aggression, a decrease in concentration and randomness of attention;
• Minimal brain dysfunction with hypoactivity due to attention deficit. These children are distinguished by inhibition, lethargy, decreased concentration of attention;
• MMD associated with impaired motility, coordination of movements;
• MMD, associated with the imperfection of spatial orientation;
• MMD, manifested in violation of speech development.

Negative factors of intrauterine development can affect and in adolescence, expressed in the propensity to use narcotic and alcoholic substances, asocial behavior, predilection for early sexual intercourse.

Small cerebral dysfunction manifests itself in the form of psychomotor excitability, mild degree of absent-mindedness, vegetative instability. In 70% of children with low minimum dysfunction, the disorders occur with minimal medical intervention. The remaining 30% face difficulties in schooling.

MMD by encephalopathic type is characterized by focal lesion of the NS, expressed in the underdevelopment of higher cortical functions. These children inherent mirroring in writing, difficulty in recognizing "right" - "left", poor speech memory. Only one third of children with this type of MMD have a favorable compensatory prognosis.

During infancy, children with MMD are characterized by increased excitability, sleep disturbance, tremor of the chin and extremities. At a later time, they are characterized by backwardness in psycho-speech development, disinhibition, difficulties in general motor skills. Enuresis often develops. As a rule, such manifestations with adequate treatment go to 5 years. If before this age the manifestations are not compensated, then by the beginning of schooling they can grow, the child will need the help of specialists.