Patient's question:
After the child was born, jaundice persisted for over twenty days, which was quite severe, but they fully recovered afterward. Later, there were doubts about the G6PD deficiency gene being inherited across generations during the Down syndrome screening. At 14 months, the child started walking and crawling, but with poor posture and instability, unable to climb stairs. They underwent three months of rehabilitation and wore corrective shoes, but the results worsened. Now, they cannot walk as they used to and need someone to hold them up; their legs feel weak. An MRI revealed patchy T1W1 hypointensity and T2W1 as well as FLAIR hyperintensity in both lateral ventricles, suggesting delayed myelination. Could the jaundice inflammation in early childhood have caused this condition?Doctor's answer:
Myelination delay is a type of myelin abnormality, usually referring to delayed myelination in the white matter of the brain. At birth, a significant amount of myelin has already been established in areas such as the reflex crowns in the brainstem, pontine arms, posterior limb of the internal capsule, and the central semilunar gyrus. The maturation process primarily occurs after birth and continues until before the age of 20, with the white matter of the brain undergoing lifelong myelination expansion.It is recommended that you first visit a hospital to investigate the cause and receive targeted treatment based on the diagnosis. Symptomatic treatment can include rehabilitation exercises, acupuncture and moxibustion therapy, and the use of neurotrophic agents such as B vitamins, Nootropil, and Panaxin.