What is the immaturity of the brain in newborns and what signs indicate it?

Parents of a newborn can be discouraged by the phrase that the pediatrician on the first examination after discharge from the hospital can “quit” in passing - “immaturity of the brain”. The stormy fantasy of the newly-made mother immediately begins to paint horrible pictures of the incredible suffering of the baby, whose brain for some reason turned out to be immature. What is it and whether to worry, we will tell in this article.

You need to start with the fact that you will not find an appropriate diagnosis in medical textbooks, reference books and encyclopedias, however hard you try. This diagnosis does not exist. We will understand what the district pediatrician is talking about.

The doctor is referring to a completely physiological condition that is considered quite normal for newborns: the immaturity of the cerebral cortex is characteristic of 100% of babies who barely were born. Problems at the level of scientists and physicians by and large do not exist, it is only in the heads of young mothers who some of the doctors (a pediatrician or an ultrasound specialist at the mandatory comprehensive screening study at 1 month) say that the child has "signs brain immaturity.

Mom, who has heard similar, it is better to skip all this past the ears, without creating psychological problems for yourself and the child, because the child doesn’t gain peace and tranquility from a nervous and torn mother. The immature cerebral cortex is just one of the signs of the overall immaturity of the newborn.

It has an immature digestive system and nervous system, immature muscle tissue and sensory organs. The brain along with other organs of the newborn baby can not be called mature.

The cerebral cortex is unique in itself. Thanks to her, man has such a distinctive feature of animals as consciousness. The bark is “responsible” for emotions, feelings, mental and intellectual abilities, figurative thinking, communicative abilities, speech and vocabulary, for the ability to analyze, remember, compare, recognize. It is this part of the brain that is “famous” for its convolutions and grooves, it is fully responsible for the individual qualities, character and temperament of a person. Cora makes him a unique personality.

The bark is formed during fetal development, but with the birth of a child the processes of formation do not end. Therefore, the doctor's conclusion on the immaturity of the cortex for a newborn is nothing more than a recognition of a natural fact, quite normal. Now, if such a conclusion is made in relation to a 25-30 year old person, his relatives will have a good reason for excitement. But this is a completely different story, which has nothing to do with the kids.

It is noteworthy that in no country in the world such a diagnosis is made to children in principle, considering this to be the height of unprofessionalism. And only in Russian pediatrics, for some reason, scare new mothers, who are already quite difficult and anxious to live in this world.

Most often, the doctor talks about the neurophysiological immaturity of the baby’s brain, because the doctor really needs to say at least something to explain to parents why the baby does not coordinate the movements of arms and legs, why he screams a lot and doesn’t sleep much, why he regurgitates and suffers from colic.

The answer to all questions is universal and simple - the cerebral cortex is not ripe enough. Is it dangerous? No, if the doctor means precisely functional immaturity.

If the doctor speaks about the morphological immaturity of the baby’s brain in the context of some of the disorders that he finds during the examination, it is more correct to put a specific neurological diagnosis, which many doctors try to avoid: child neurology is very complex and not always obvious even to the doctor, but to take responsibility for nobody wants a mistake.

More often than others, parents of premature babies hear the verdict about the presence of an immature brain. They are once again recommended to reread the article from the very beginning, making a substantial amendment to the fact that all organs and systems of a premature baby are even more immature than organs of a full-term baby.

Often, such a conclusion is heard by young mothers who, during pregnancy, went through various pathologies, lived in areas with unfavorable environmental conditions (although now every pregnant woman can be safely attributed to this risk group, except for mothers who live in remote settlements deep in the taiga) .

If a neurologist sees such records as “intrauterine hypoxia”, “rhesus-conflict”, “protracted labor” (alternatively, “rapid birth”) in the child's card, he will certainly find the child's hypertonus, lethargy, drowsiness, loudness or other signs the most mysterious "disease" - the immaturity of the brain.

Undoubtedly, there are situations in which children do have anomalies of the development of the brain that are in no way connected with its age characteristics: congenital malformations of the departments and areas of the cortex, underdevelopment or lack of lobes, smoothing convolutions and furrows. But such states have medical names that exist in reference books, which the doctor should announce after a detailed and careful study of the child’s condition (examinations are carried out, such as ultrasound, MRI, CT).

If the wording and reasons are more or less clear, then it’s time to talk about what worries moms most of all - what the consequences might be. Absolutely nothing, if we are talking about the most common physiological immaturity. By 5 years, the baby's cerebral cortex will complete formation, and by the end of the pubertal period, it will officially be considered fully mature. No treatment is required: a child, surrounded by care and love, will grow up and “mature” in a completely natural way.

In most cases, massage, gymnastics contribute to the removal of many neurological manifestations without harm to the child in the future. With congenital malformations of the brain, predictions depend on the degree of functional impairment, but this again has no relation to immaturity.

The famous pediatrician Yevgeny Komarovsky claims that the immaturity of the cerebral cortex for a newborn is a diagnosis that a self-respecting doctor will never make. It is the immaturity of the brain that is important for a baby in the first 3-4 months of his life, because it causes innate reflexes - prehensile, creeping, reflex support, automatic walking and a number of others. According to them, doctors judge the normal development of the child, and therefore the phenomenon, which is their basis and prerequisite, cannot be considered a disease. Unless, of course, this is not about a child of school age.

On how to help the crumbs, if he is lagging behind in development, the pediatric neurologist will tell in the next video.