MINNEAPOLIS - Strokes are normally a condition associated with the elderly, but they can happen to in children -- even the unborn. Now, researchers at the University of Minnesota say a new treatment called neuroplasticity could help lessen injury to the brain after a stroke.
For the past five months, 5-year-old Mason Hansen hasn't been able to get enough of his hip-hop class at Select Dance in Shakopee. Nearly every child in the class is the same age and has a similar skill level, but Hansen is unique because it's difficult for him to move his right side due to an in-utero stroke.
Hansen's mother, Riana, told FOX 9 News her pregnancy was normal, and her son's birth was uneventful. About four or five months later, however, she and her husband, Josh, began noticing the differences in their son.
"It's somewhat normal to display a preference for one hand, but his was becoming very, very obvious that he was neglecting his right arm and side altogether," Riana Hansen said.
When Mason Hansen was 6 months old, a CAT scan confirmed what doctors suspected.
"We asked them, 'What does this mean for Mason? What's his life going to be like?'" Josh Hansen recalled. "Everyone said, 'We don't know,' 'we can't say,' 'every child is different.'"
Now, Hansen isn't very different from his brother or sister, he just compensates. Though his big brother, Evan, doesn't mind lending a helping hand when challenges arise, the family says they know others won't always be there for Mason. That's why therapy has become a way of life for the young boy.
At Capable Kids in Chaska, Occupational Therapist Cari Jankowski uses different activities to help Mason adapt and grow.
"We are making him work on engaging his core muscles to stay on the tire swing so he doesn't fall off -- and (to) make him aware of the right side of his body," said Jankowski.
Through therapy, he has learned to dress and feed himself, but he's still often learning to do things later than other children do. His first bike ride would come at age four.
"Those little milestones are fantastic. We get so excited about them because it reassures us," said Josh Hansen. "We know he's going to get there and he's going to take his own time getting there."
So if Riana Hansen had a healthy and seemingly problem-free pregnancy, how do prenatal strokes occur?
"We don't know a lot about what actually causes it," admitted Andy Grande, a neurosurgeon at the University of Minnesota.
Grande says a mother really has no way of preventing an in-utero stroke or sensing when it takes place. The stroke can strike any time between contraception and the child's birth.
"Those that occur very early on, typically, the symptoms in the child once born are much lass than what they are if that stroke occurs later during the pregnancy," Grande said.
In-utero strokes occur once in every 3,000 births, and there is a 95 percent survival rate. Out of those children who do experience a stroke in the womb, half of them never show any signs after they are born.
"Their brains rewire, and as a consequence, the deficits they may have early on go away, so the stroke is never recognized," Grande explained.
Yet, it's the other half of those children -- those like Mason Hansen -- that doctors like Grande worry about.
"We want them to have a normal life -- a very rich one without these deficits," Grande said.
That's why Grande says he is so excited about the research getting under way at the University of Minnesota. One of the treatments currently being studied is called neuroplasticity.
"Neuroplasticity is basically rewiring the brain, or an area adjacent to the area of injury," Grande said, explaining that the rewired portion of the brain would then assume the role previously occupied by the injured area.
Eventually, the injured area of the brain can be corrected, and without major interruptions in brain function, life should be a little easier for patients.
"I'm very hopeful we'll be able to offer therapy for kids who have had a stroke in utero, even if it's diagnosed four or five months later," Grande said.
Though Mason Hansen's physical challenges don't hold him back from pursuing his passions, his parents say they know the stroke will continue to affect his life.
"We are worried about how he is going to fit in socially," Josh Hansen admitted. "Kids do notice that his foot turns in a little bit and needs some extra assistance from the teachers while carrying a tray in the lunch room. Things like that."
The Hansens say they hope others will not focus on his challenges, but rather on the lessons children like Mason can teach us.
"I don't think we look at him any different or treat him any different because of that, and my hope is nobody else does as well," Josh Hansen said.
For now, Mason Hansen fits in just fine and isn't skipping a beat. Cognitively, he is right on track with his peers, and his parents are hopeful he'll continue to make strides with his right side. Watching the moves he's learning for his recital certainly
Read more from the original source:
U Researchers Seek In-Utero Stroke Fix