Microcephaly

The incidence of microcephaly is approximately 1 case every 8,500 births. In other words, the child's head does not grow as much as it should and it stays small.

It does not always manifest itself at birth, but can develop during the first months of life. The relationship between microcephaly and mental retardation is very common, but there are 15% of children with microcephaly who have normal intellectual capacity.

Causes of microcephaly

Under normal conditions, the skull grows to accommodate an expanding brain. Therefore, the most frequent cases of microcephaly are due to the brain stopping growing at a normal rate.

They relate to microcephaly some genetic syndromes, exposure to toxins during pregnancy, infectious diseases during pregnancy and some metabolic disease.

The most frequent causes of this alteration of brain growth are:

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• Cri du chat syndrome
• Trisomy 13 and 18
• Infections during pregnancy: rubella, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus, and Zika virus
• Maternal diabetes
• Phenylketonuria
• Maternal malnutrition
• Mercury poisoning
• Alcoholism or drug abuse during pregnancy

Diagnosis

If microcephaly affects the child at birth, it can be detected with one during pregnancy. Above all, its diagnosis is easier in the third trimester.

At other times, it can develop in the months after birth. In these cases, the diagnosis will be made when the measurements of the cranial perimeter that are carried out routinely in the pediatrician's check-ups are taken.

Symptoms

The main symptom is that the baby or child has a smaller head than normal. In addition to this, it can be associated with: crying or irritability, seizures, limb spasticity, hyperactivity, psychomotor retardation and mental retardation.

Treatment

There is no specific treatment or cure for this disease. The only measure to be taken is for the child to develop his full potential with early stimulation and a follow-up in his psychomotor and cognitive achievements.

If you have any questions about the health of your children, it is best to consult a specialist. They have a 24-hour Pediatric Guidance service. Child health specialists will attend to any questions about health concerns or problems in babies and children (information on symptoms, medications, vaccines).