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Marcus was brought to see me by his mother because of slow
speech development which had further deteriorated following
a bout of ear infections. At the time of consultation
Marcus was four and a half but appeared younger due to slowed
physical development.
On questioning it was revealed that Marcus wet the bed
every night and had frequent accidents by day, shunned
affection and was basically a loner avoiding contact
with other children.
On examination he was unable to stand with his eyes closed, had
reduced reflexes, an inability to converge his
eyes for close vision, was totally dyspraxic and
had a positive Babinski sign on the right ( an up-going toe when
the sole of the foot is stroked).
Typically only one aspect of this childs problems had been addressed,
namely the most obvious sign the lack of speech. However, we must
bear in mind that dysphasia, dyslexia are only symptoms of an underlying
problem and not diseases in themselves.
By looking at the bigger neurological picture it was possible to
identify those parts of the nervous system that were under functioning
and having ruled out any more worrying problems address the neurophysiological
causes of the outward expression of this basic delayed maturation.
Following his second treatment Marcus climbed into bed with his
mother and cuddled her. His mother cried having never experienced
any expressions of affection from him before. On his third visit
to the clinic he started talking albeit quietly
at first and his mother reported he was now dry by day.
During the next two weeks he became dry by night
and was constantly asking his mother if he could go next door to
play with the neighbours children.
I have monitored Marcus over a period of months mainly by e-mail
reports from his mother and have been delighted by his continued
progress and the speed at which he has made up lost ground.
Anyone with a medical background might be concerned that many of
these children present with what appears to be worrying upper motor
neuron signs e.g. the positive Babinski sign in this case. However,
the superficial abdominal reflexes (stroking the abdomen causes
the belly-button to move in the direction of the area stroked) was
negative thus ruling out this more serious concern. Generally the
positive Babinski is a retained primitive reflex which is a normal
finding in infants but should be replaced as the nervous system
grows and matures by the “adult” postural reflexes. It is therefore
a clue as to the state of development of the child’s neurophysiological
maturation.
Typically, as in this case there will be a history of recurrent
ear infections, tonsillitis, eczema
and/or asthma. These are signs of an underlying
under functioning autoimmune system. The immune system is principally
under the control of the right cerebral cortex and as 98% of boys
will have problems with the right cortex it is logical that an under
functioning immune system will be powerless to resist minor recurrent
infections. It is the self same mechanism that results in the stressed
executive falling ill as soon as he/she takes that much deserved
break. With the pressure off the system crashes.
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