Viral infections linked to cerebral palsy: study

LONDON (Reuters) – Exposure to certain viral infections
around the time of birth is linked to cerebral palsy,
Australian scientists said on Friday.

Findings by researchers at the University of Adelaide
suggest that neurotropic infections, which include the herpes
viruses, mumps and measles, could trigger brain damage and
cerebral palsy, a group of disorders that impairs the control
of movement.

“The risk of cerebral palsy is nearly doubled with exposure
to the herpes B viruses,” Catherine Gibson, a research fellow
at the university, said in a report in The British Medical
Journal.

But she added that other factors such as a susceptibility
to infection or prematurity may be needed for the disorder to
develop.

“Future studies are planned to investigate these factors,”
Gibson and her colleagues added.

Cerebral palsy is caused by poor development or damage to
the motor areas of the brain. Signs of the disorder usually
appear before the age of three, according to the National
Institutes of Health (NIH) in the United States.

The severity of symptoms varies. There is no cure but drugs
can help to control seizures and spasms along with physical,
occupational and behavioral therapy.

Gibson and her team analyzed blood samples taken within a
few days of birth from 443 children with cerebral palsy and 883
other babies born between 1986 and 1999.

They found that herpes B viruses were found more frequently
in children later diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Neurotropic
viruses can cross the placenta and infect the baby shortly
before or after birth.

The researchers said the likelihood of the mother’s
infection crossing into the fetus depends on the virus, whether
the infection is recurrent and the age of the fetus at the time
of the infection.

“It is unclear how perinatal (around the time of birth)
exposure to viral infection causes subsequent brain damage and
cerebral palsy. If the virus is able to cross the blood-brain
barrier, it is capable of setting up infection in the brain and
directly damaging vulnerable neuronal tissue,” Gibson added.