INFANTILE SPASTIC HEMIPLEGIA V. ORAL LANGUAGE AND MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

[摘要] A study of the onset of walking and oral language in the present series of patients with spastic hemiplegia has led to the following conclusions.The group composed of all patients with congenital hemiplegia plus those who acquired spastic hemiplegia before the onset of walking and talking showed a delay from normals of 9 months in walking and talking words and a delay of 6 months from normals in using sentences.When only the patients with congenital hemiplegia are considered, the delay is again 9 months for walking and first words an 7 months for the use of sentences.The patients with acquired hemiplegia walked and talked earlier than those congenitally involved; the delay for walking being 5 months, for first words, 8 months, and 4 months for sentences. The differences between the "congenital" and "acquired" groups, though not statistically significant, suggest that those patients with some normal period of development predating the onset of spastic hemiplegia, acquire their motor and language skills earlier.Although patients with left hemiplegia walked and talked from 2 to 3 months earlier than those with right hemiplegia, the differences were not statistically significant.The presence of seizures delayed walking 6 months, talking of words nearly 9 months and sentence usage less than 1 month.Mental deficiency likewise delayed motor and language development.Mental deficiency was a much more potent factor in delaying walking than was the presence of seizures.The physical defect of hemiplegia per se does not retard the rate of motor and speech development more than 4 to 5 months.

[学科分类] 儿科学