Rare Neurological Disorders in Babies

Below we have discussed about the 2 rare, but extremely serious neurological disorders occurring in babies:

Galactosemia:

This is basically an inherited condition. Galactosemia stops the simple sugar known as galactose from breaking down into glucose and lactose. 1 out of every 60,000 newborns develops this condition. Newborns, who are given lactose i.e. the sugar present in milk, experience a piling up of agents from galactose. The symptoms of galactosemia start appearing within some days after the baby is born; the common signs of the condition include: poor feeding, convulsions, lethargy, impaired growth, irritability, vomiting and jaundice. According to medical experts, a baby with galactosemia might also develop an infection from the bacteria called E. coli. Infants suffering from this neurological disorder cannot ingest milk or milk products, which also include breast milk. Thus, doctors suggest feeding these babies either with meat based formula or soy milk; these food items help in reducing the intensity of damage caused to the baby’s brain, kidneys, eyes and liver. However, still the baby remains at risk of developing mental deficiencies.

Menkes disease:

This genetic disorder mostly occurs in the males. It impairs the actions of the gene responsible for regulating the level of copper in human body. A newborn suffering from menkes disease has high levels of copper in his intestine and low levels of the mineral in the liver and brain. Majority of the babies with Menkes disease are born prematurely. Usually, these babies grow normally for 6 to 8 weeks, after which their growth gets impaired. The other signs of the condition include: poor muscle growth, seizures, decreased appetite etc. The baby might also have a body temperature much lower than the normal body temperature of infants of his age. Oddly kinky and colorless hairs are other common signs of menkes disease in infants.

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