How baby stroke survivors' brains adapt

A study of children who had strokes as babies has found they adapted to use a different part of their brain for language.

Imaging revealed language was based in the exact mirror opposite region to the normal left side area. 
Some researchers hope their work will help the rehabilitation of adult stroke patients. 
An expert said the brain had an "incredible ability" to make up for what was lost in a stroke.
It's estimated that one in 4,000 babies are affected shortly before, during or after birth by a stroke.
The plasticity of babies' developing brains makes them better able to recover from a stroke than adults. 

The research,  looked at 12 perinatal stroke survivors aged 12-25.The case studies had few indicators that they had experienced a stroke - one had a limp and many had learned to make their left hands dominant because of the stroke damaging the right hand's function - but all had developed good language skills. 

However they found that, because their brains were developing when they had the strokes, they were able to adapt. 




"We believe there are very important constraints to where functions can be relocated. There are very specific regions that take over when part of the brain is injured, depending on the particular function. 

Strokes in babies

• A stroke happens when the blood supply to part of the brain is cut off.
• There are over 400 childhood strokes a year in the UK - around a quarter of these are in children under a year old.
• Babies are vulnerable due to stress on the brain during childbirth and the change in blood circulation from the mother to baby.
• Stroke in babies during pregnancy to 28 days after birth are known as pre- and perinatal ischemic stroke.
• They are usually caused by clots breaking off from the placenta and lodging in the child's brain, or because of a blood-clotting disorder that the mother or baby may have.
• Strokes in the first few weeks of life are often missed and only picked up on when a child doesn't seem to be developing as expected, or is displaying a weakness down one side.
• Some children, especially newborn infants, may not show any symptoms. In babies up to 28 days old, seizures are a common symptom of stroke.

This was a small study, said a researcher, but  he added: "We do know that the brain can have an incredible ability to reorganise undamaged cells after a stroke, and make up for what has been lost.
"In many cases, with the right support, stroke survivors of any age are able to walk, talk and live independently again. 

"But there is much more research that needs to be done to help us fully understand how the brain can recover after a stroke."
 

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