Abstract
Cerebral Palsy (CP) is one of the foremost causes of childhood motor disability and disrupts the individual's development and ability to function. Several factors contribute to the development of CP such as preterm delivery, low birth weight, infection/inflammation, and additional pregnancy complications, both in preterm and term infants. As there is no specific treatment for CP, rehabilitation is the current option for the management of patients. The serious nature of this condition creates deficits that last a lifetime. We collected studies that were published in the past 10 years, using PubMed as our main database. We chose studies that were relevant to CP and stem cell therapy. We mainly focused on various types of stem cells that can be used in treatment, mechanism of action (MOA) of stem cells, routes, dosage, and adverse effects, their efficacy, and safety in CP patients. Of all the 38 studies we reviewed, we found that five articles discussed the utilization of human umbilical cord blood [hUCB], four articles discussed autologous bone marrow stem cells, and one discussed allogeneic umbilical cord blood usage. One article discussed neural stem-like cells (NSLCs) derived from bone marrow and the remaining 27 articles were about CP and its treatment.We reviewed detailed information about the possible stem cell therapies and their benefits in patients with CP. We found that immune modulation is the major mechanism of action of stem cells, and among all the types of stem cells. Autologous umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells appear to be safe and most effective in treatment compared to other stem cell treatments. Among all symptoms, motor symptoms are best corrected by stem cell therapy. Still, it did not show any marked improvement in treating other symptoms like speech defects, sensory or cognitive defects, or visual impairment.
Highlights
BackgroundCerebral palsy (CP) is a heterogeneous group of conditions involving permanent non-progressive motor dysfunction that affects muscle tone, posture, and movement-related symptoms characterized by spasticity, dyskinesia, and ataxia [1]
We mainly focused on various types of stem cells that can be used in treatment, mechanism of action (MOA) of stem cells, routes, dosage, and adverse effects, their efficacy, and safety in Cerebral Palsy (CP) patients
We reviewed detailed information about the possible stem cell therapies and their benefits in patients with CP
Summary
BackgroundCerebral palsy (CP) is a heterogeneous group of conditions involving permanent non-progressive motor dysfunction that affects muscle tone, posture, and movement-related symptoms characterized by spasticity, dyskinesia, and ataxia [1]. Eighty percent of children affected with CP show spasticity as a prominent feature [1]. This is accompanied with other symptoms like pain (50% to 75%), intellectual disability (50%), speechlanguage disorders (40% to 60%), bladder control problems (30% to 60%), visual impairment (30% to 50%), epilepsy (25% to 45%), behavior disorder (25% to 40%), hip displacement (30%), sleep disorder (20%), and drooling (20%) [2,3]. Major risk factors that can lead to brain injury are preterm birth, perinatal infection (specially chorioamnionitis), intrauterine growth restriction, use of preterm antibiotics before rupturing of membranes, acidosis or asphyxia, and multiple gestations [9,10]. Despite discussion about many risk factors, 80% of cases have no specific cause and are considered idiopathic [11]
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