rett's disorder

She was 4 years old when I first saw her. She was dressed in a cute frilly dress and pulling herself across the floor with her hands and arms, kind of like in a scooting motion.

The first thing I noticed was that she was severely chaffed around her mouth and lips. There was a red scaley patch all the way around her mouth. The second thing I noticed was that as she sat up, she began flapping her arms, mimicking movements I have seen in children with Autism. Then I noticed that her little hands were as chaffed and red as the area around her mouth.

The chaffed mouth was from constant lip licking. The chaffed hands were from constant mouthing and wringing.

I had never seen a child with Rett's Disorder before. I was disheartened to learn that at the age of 2, she had been developing normally. Now, her prognosis was poor. Rett's Disorder is classified under the umbrella disorder of Pervasive Developmental Disorders and frequently mimics Autism except that Retts is only characteristic in females. Typically, a young girl begins developing normally for at least five months following birth. Then, learned skills seem to deteriorate over the next year-and-a-half to two years. The child's head growth slows and communication is severely affected. Motor skills, particularly those of the hands, deteriorate remarkable or are lost. Mental Retardation and lack of social skills are also characteristic.

Symptoms of Rett's Disorder include:

• Normal development during the first few months of life, followed by a rapid deterioration in development
• Loss of motor skills and coordination
• Deceleration of head growth
• Poor language and cognitive skills
• Stereotypical movements such as hand-wringing

Treatment

Treatment involves maintaining developmental skills for as long as possible through therapy, including physical, occupational, and speech and language therapy. Family counseling is also recommended to help family members understand and deal with the disorder as well as the loss.