Autologous Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cell Transplantation with Neurorehabilitation for Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is characterized by a non-progressive motor impairment related to brain injury early in development. It may be associated with other deficits such as intellectual disability, speech and language and oromotor problems. In many cases, the cause of CP may not be apparent. So, the current treatment options are mostly focused on the symptomatic management. Herein, we present a case of an eight year old child diagnosed as cerebral palsy with intellectual disability. He was administered with autologous bone marrow derived mononuclear cells intrathecally. Eight months after intervention, Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) scale score changed from 1.9 to 3.077 depicting improvement in movement. On follow up improvements were noticed in oromotor functions, neck control and sitting balance, awareness, understanding of surrounding. These functional improvements correlated with the improved brain metabolism in basal ganglia, cerebellum, hippocampus and thalamus as observed in Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography (PET-CT) Scan. No major side effects were recorded after intervention. The results suggest that autologous bone marrow derived mononuclear cells have a significant potential as a therapeutic strategy for CP.