Physical handicap

Facets of Physical Disability/Handicap

1. Meijianthaipou Ruangmei, St Joseph university, dimpaur-nagaland Physical handicaps

2. A physical disability is a limitation on a person's physical functioning, mobility, dexterity or stamina. Other physical disabilities include impairments which limit other facets of daily living, such as respiratory disorders, blindness, epilepsy and sleep disorders. A disability is defined as a condition or function judged to be significantly impaired relative to the usual standard of an individual or group. The term is used to refer to individual functioning, including physical impairment, sensory impairment, cognitive impairment, intellectual impairment mental illness, and various types of chronic disease. Disability is conceptualized as being a multidimensional experience for the person involved. There may be effects on organs or body parts and there may be effects on a person's participation in areas of life. Correspondingly, three dimensions of disability are recognized in ICF: body structure and function (and impairment thereof), activity (and activity restrictions) and participation (and participation restrictions).

3. CAUSES OF PHYSICAL DISABILITY There are three different causes or ways a person can acquire a physical disability. 1. Prenatal physical disabilities are caused by, or are attributes to, genetics or by a embryonic or fetal development accidents. This type of physical disability can also be caused by diseases or substances the mother was exposed to while pregnant. Prenatal physical disabilities occur while the baby is being developed before birth. 2. Prenatal physical disabilities occur a few weeks before the baby is born and up to four weeks after its birth. Sometimes this type of disability is caused by accidents or genetics. Other causes can be from misuse of forceps during birth, prolonged lack of oxygen before or during birth, respiratory tract obstruction, or being born too early. 3. Postnatal physical disabilities occur in a person after birth. Besides genetics, this type of physical disability can be caused by accidents or an infection. Other causes can be attributed to obesity or other types of physical illnesses.

4. Physical disabilities A physical disability is one that affects a person's mobility or dexterity. A person with a physical disability may need to use some sort of equipment for assistance with mobility. It also includes people who have lost limbs or who, because of the shape of their body, require slight adaptations to be made to enable them to participate fully in society. Paraplegia and Quadriplegia are what many people first identify with a physical disability. Paraplegia results from injury to the spinal cord, occurring below the neck, while quadriplegia refers to damage to the spinal cord in the neck. Varying degrees of loss of limb and other mobility may result from either condition. Other forms of physical disability, such as polio (an acquired disease), cerebral palsy (damage to brain tissue during fetal stages) and some genetic conditions can result in loss of mobility.

5. Types of Physical Disabilities Paraplegia Quadriplegia Hemiplegia Multiple sclerosis (MS) Cerebral palsy Absent limb/reduced limb function Dystrophy Polio

6. Paraplegia means partial or complete paralysis of the lower half of the body with involvement of both legs that is usually due to injury or disease of the spinal cord in the thoracic or lumbar region Quadriplegia means one affected with partial or complete paralysis of both the arms and legs especially as a result of spinal cord injury or disease in the region of the neck Hemiplegia means total or partial paralysis of one side of the body that results from disease of or injury to the motor centers of the brain

7. Multiple sclerosis (MS) a demyelinating disease marked by patches of hardened tissue in the brain or the spinal cord and associated especially with partial or complete paralysis and jerking muscle tremor

8. Cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a neurological disorder that affects a child’s movement, motor skills, and muscle tone. In most cases, cerebral palsy is caused by brain damage that develops while the baby is still in utero or during or shortly after birth

9. Amelia Absent limb/reduced limb function Amelia is the birth defect of lacking one or more limbs. It can also result in a shrunken or deformed limb. The term may be modified to indicate the number of legs or arms missing at birth, such as tetra- amelia for the absence of all four limbs. A related term is meromelia , which is the partial absence of a limb or limbs.

10. Dystrophy Dystrophy is the degeneration of tissue, due to disease or malnutrition, most likely due to heredity. Muscular dystrophy is a group of hereditary diseases causing progressive muscular weakness, loss of muscular control, contractions and difficulty in walking, breathing, reaching, and use of hands involving strength.

11. Poliomyelitis , often called polio or infantile paralysis , is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. In about 0.5 percent of cases there is muscle weakness resulting in an inability to move. This can occur over a few hours to a few days. The weakness most often involves the legs but may less commonly involve the muscles of the head and neck. In those with muscle weakness about 2 to 5 percent of children and 15 to 30 percent of adults die. Another 25 percent of people have minor symptoms such as fever and a sore throat and up to 5 percent have headache, neck stiffness and pains in the arms and legs. In up to 70 percent of infections there are no symptoms.

12. CONCLUSION we have observed that physical disability is part of humanity. No one is its victim out of choice. Therefore, we can not use it as a basis of discrimination to those that suffer from it. Instead, we should make effort on how we can empower those few that are disadvantaged, as we all deserve a life. Indeed, disability is not inability.