Physical Symptoms of Rett Syndrome

Many of the symptoms of Rett Syndrome can simply be seen by just looking at a child who has Rett Syndrome. The child will have a smaller than usual head, which is caused by the slowing or stopping of brain development during pregnancy. Also the child will have spastic hand movements which should not happen while the child is asleep but will happen while she is awake. Also impared language development is a symptom of Retts. The child may not develop language use as fast as other children, the child might not even be able to speak at all. This all happens in the early development stages of children (between the ages of 1-4 years). In later stages the child will have a loss of all speaking ability. She will lose control of her hand movements and will not be able to use her hands at all. She will lose most all of her motor skills. Also during this time she will be prone to seizures. She may actually improve in speech ability and her attention span may increase later in this stage. Children with Rett will be in this stage for most of their lives. Eventually they will progress to a stage when it is very hard to walk or even stand. Girls may develop scoliosis during this stage. None of the other symptoms deterioriate during this stage, although focus may improve.