United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hello,

My niece was born with L Erb's Palsy in 1997. Her left arm did not function, as a result she did not crawl. Residual physical effects are as follows: Left scapula protrudes, Left should blade sticks out, Left arm doesn't raise as high as right. It is also noted that she has difficulty skipping.

In the past 2 years, she has been having difficulties in school. Primarily in reading comprehension, handwriting, math, and memory skills. Is it possible that this learning disability is an indirect result of the Erb's Palsy due to the child missing the crawling stage. I have read many articles on this vital developmental stage and it's effect on "brain wiring".

Please advise if you have any insight in this situation.

Cindie K.

Not every child should crawl, i was healthy baby and i never crawl and i didnt find any learning difficulties , i'm working now as a computer engineer!

Noha

Frankie never crawled he was walking by 9 months. He does have bad hand writing for a 14yr old but he says his hand gets tired and hurts the doctors said it is over use.
He had problems with reading comprehension but is a straight A student now It took till the end of third grade getting extra help in school. As far as skipping he can I can't. But he was always falling down that kid could be walking down the hall and trip over air. He fell on the side walk one time and hit his face breaking his two front teeth I was right next to him there was nothing there to trip him and when he went down he couldn't put his hand out to protect his face. He doesn't fall as much now but at 5"9 170 lbs he's like a bull in a china shop. Mare

There is so much to this injury that is poorly understood. Juliana is in 2nd grade and is extremely bright, but doesn't work at nearly the level or speed which a child of her intelligence should. Some of it is sensory (she hears EVERYTHING in the room) and some of it is motor planning and I believe that a lot of it has to do with the hand dominance issues she faces. She was supposed to be left dominant and uses her right instead.

She also is a klutz. She is an excellent athlete, but (and I love Mare's description) can trip over air. We used to call her "the smurf" because of all the bruises. We are struggling with our school district, as they only want to see her issues as physical and refuse to admit or even examine the idea that the physical disabilities might lead to learning difficulties. We are lucky that she has an excellent teacher, but I know that not all kids have that.

The adults have been very helpful in giving me ideas to help Juliana. We are trying to organize her differently, to minimize the motor planning issues.

It helps to find out how the child feels in the classroom. The kids are quite intuitive, and once you know what is going wrong for them, you can help to find a solution.

Sometimes, something as simple as where she is placed in the classroom will be helpful. Juliana has a desk at the front of the room, so she can concentrate on what the teacher is saying, but then moves to the back of the room to sit alone to do the work. The children at her "table" are too distracting.

I know it isn't concrete, but know that so many of our bpi kids learn to adapt and do really, really well in school.

good luck,
claudia

As Claudia Said,
My son is in third grade and is very intelligent....but the sensory issues someimes get in the way. The beginning of the year his teacher didn't want to hear any of this...first year teacher. As soon as she did what I Asked of her...move him to the back far corner, away from her desk and distractions, he was fine and still is. Every child is different is what I Am decribing here. Brandon cannot be around teachers desk because there is too much activity....so, the back corner is the best fro him. My son didn't crawl either !!! GAYLE

My 2 cents on this:
There is a large Forum discussion on SENSORY INTERGRATION DESFUNCTION ISSUES on both Message Boards, "General" and "Adults with OBPI", that VALIDATE Sensory Disintergration Issues with OBPI, because it is all NEUROLOGICALLY CONNECTED and since each individual BPI injuries are different, this DISABILITY must be documented and assessed by a Professional in order to recieve OT/PT or accommations thru 504. Each School district operates differently as shared in above posts; fyi, it usually is budget priorties over child needs that is why parents need to do the research in their School District and be STRONG enough and prepared to fight for everything your child needs and hold them accountable to the laws.

Bottom line:...why "My Mantra" to all parents is to Take Care of YOURSELVES, OBPI is a Lifetime of Advocacy for everyone involved with a child with OBPI.

HUGS all around,
Carolyn J
Adult LOBPI & Mom of Scott who had multible disablilities(non-BPI Related) now a successful, productive adult!

It certainly is a complicated matter. My niece had a recent visit with the pediatrician to discuss her learning problems. He immediately wrote out a script for Ritalin before doing any diagnostic tests whatsoever. This child is very quiet, friendly, and pleasant. No behavior problems. I am just shocked at how quickly the doctors are to write out scripts before doing testing and diagnosing a child's problems. Have you encountered such cart before horse situations?

> It certainly is a complicated matter. My niece had a
> recent visit with the pediatrician to discuss her
> learning problems. He immediately wrote out a script
> for Ritalin before doing any diagnostic tests
> whatsoever. This child is very quiet, friendly, and
> pleasant. No behavior problems. I am just shocked at
> how quickly the doctors are to write out scripts
> before doing testing and diagnosing a child's
> problems. Have you encountered such cart before
> horse situations?

Absolutely, I Think almost everyone has. There are other reasons that children don't do well in school. How about an eye examination. This is a big one for us, because, my daughter is virtually blind and we didn't catch it till third grade. She passed all her school eye exams. The doctor says this is frequent and is also misdiagnosed as ADD !!! Good luck, but if I Would you I would suggest not giving the ritilain GAYLE

Absolutely no Ritalin. We refused until further evaluations warranting this medication are determined. We are going to Cinci on Tuesday to see a neurologist.

My daighter had the glasses problem and ADD but I never started her on anything until after I knew it wasn't the glasses giving her the "PROBLEM" I think taking her to CINCI is the best idea. Also check on sensory issues, they are a big thing in children with BPI !!! GAYLE