Health, well-being and congenital rubella syndrome A Sense and Sense Scotland practice sharing event 6-7 March 2009, Crewe, England Contents Summary 1 In detail 1 What is rubella? Signs of CRS at birth Commonly reported issues in childhood Timing of maternal infection Preventing CRS 10 What effects does CRS have in adulthood? The frustration of others’ ignorance Surveys and studies of CRS Sharing your knowledge Finding out more Summary 2 In detail 2 The human endocrine system Thyroid problems Diabetes Reproductive Hormones Feedback from delegates More information on diabetes and thyroid problems Summary 3 In detail 3 The eye 27 Cataract Glaucoma Retinal detachment Losing central vision Taking someone for an eye examination Comments and suggestions arising from group discussion Feedback from delegates Further information on vision Summary 4 In detail 4 How does CRS affect the ear? How much is people’s hearing impaired? What problems do people have with their ears? Assessing hearing Effects on behaviour Hearing aids Feedback from delegates Summary 5 In detail 5 Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) Pulmonary artery stenosis Other heart difficulties Supporting the deafblind person with treatment Feedback from delegates Handy heart sites Summary 6 In detail 6 CRS and behaviour Being a health detective The value of communication The value of keeping active – and enjoying it The value of friendships and relationships Healthy eating and drinking Monitoring and recording activities and health Sharing information Enjoy good practice Conclusion – the key issues Summary 7 In detail 7 Behavioural, social and psychological difficulties reported in people with CRS Investigating the causes of behavioural difficulties Brain development and virus infections From theory to practice Sources and resources Summary 8 In detail 8 Why we need to take challenging behaviour seriously Why do some people show challenging behaviours? Looking for causes CRS and challenging behaviour: the behaviour is the sneeze, not the cold! What can we do? 73 Medication and mental health The vital importance of staff Mirror, mirror ... Choosing activities Summary 9 In detail 9 DbI and the rubella network (William Green and Linda Long) Sense Scotland (Paul Hart) Anne Sullivan Centre, Dublin (Finola Loughney) Canadian Deafblind and Rubella Organisation (Denise Drake and Diane Wilcock) Viataal, Netherlands (Trees van Nunen and Anneka Schoenmaker) Sense (Joff McGill) Introduction Sense and Sense Scotland were founded because of rubella. When pregnant women catch rubella their babies are affected by the virus and many are born deafblind and with other difficulties. Fifty years ago families desperately needed support and came together to find it. Over the years, we have built up considerable knowledge and experience together and this seminar enabled us to share our knowledge of congenital rubella syndrome, and to learn from each other and from colleagues in other organisations and in other countries. In the UK today, few babies are born with rubella thanks to the almost universal vaccination of our population through the MMR programme. But people are still living with CRS – they are getting older now, and we need to continue to research and learn about the combined effects of age and CRS on people’s lives. Elsewhere in the world too, rubella is still a major problem and there will long be a need for the knowledge we are gathering now. During the seminar over 50 delegates – most of them practitioners - talked about what it’s like to grow older with congenital rubella syndrome, and what we can do to support people better. While there was plenty of information and discussion about the medical health aspects of CRS, the dominant desire of everyone present was to find ways of ensuring that people with CRS experience the best possible quality of life, no matter what health issues they live with. A trio of overarching themes developed: • the importance of understanding the initial and ongoing medical effects of CRS and their implications • the importance of communication between professionals and the person with CRS • the importance of collaboration between professionals. This report describes the main ideas and information discussed at the seminar. Each section begins with a brief summary so that you can skim through the report quickly – or you can read the more detailed information which follows. The report follows the order of the presentations and workshops over the two days of the seminar. The first day focussed primarily on medical health issues, and the second on people’s well-being and the effects of CRS on behaviour. The discussions centred on the lives of people severely affected by CRS, many of whom have serious multiple impairments and communication problems, although we recognised that CRS affects people in different degrees and that people less seriously affected also want to know the long-term health effects of the syndrome. An overview of health and congenital rubella Linda Long, Health Development Officer, Sense Scotland Pat Tookey, National Congenital Rubella Surveillance Programme, UCL Institute of Child Health, London Summary 1 Rubella is a mild illness, mostly caught in childhood. However, when transmitted to a woman in the first four months of pregnancy it can cause serious impairments in the baby, leading to eye, ear and heart defects and other problems. In much of Europe and the Americas rubella is now almost absent because of comprehensive immunisation programmes, though elsewhere rubella is still a significant problem. Even where new cases of CRS are rare, adults continue to live with CRS: the purpose of this seminar is to look at their lives, and how they are affected by CRS. Though scientific research into the effects of CRS on adults is still limited, we do know that people with CRS are more likely to suffer thyroid conditions and diabetes than other people. We also suspect that CRS may cause other conditions to develop earlier or more often. In detail 1 This session looked at what congenital rubella syndrome is, how common, and at key health issues for people with CRS. What is rubella? Rubella was first identified in 1750 in Germany, but it wasn’t until 1938 that it was recognised as a viral infection. It is not related to measles, despite its misleading common name of German measles. Rubella is usually a mild disease, and people may not even realise they have caught it. In populations without rubella vaccination in early childhood it is common, and most often caught between the ages of 4 and 9 years. In these populations the virus continually circulates, though it is more prevalent in the spring, and there are epidemics about every five years. Although rubella is a mild disease, if a woman catches it while pregnant it can have serious effects on her unborn child, causing congenital rubella syndrome (CRS). Signs of CRS at birth The signs of CRS will be present at birth. The three classic signs are: sensorineural deafness in one or both ears heart defects eye abnormalities – cataracts and microphthalmia. Other signs include: low birth weight microcephaly retinopathy enlarged spleen enlarged liver thrombocytopenic purpura (rash). Commonly reported issues in childhood As the child grows, parents may notice further signs. An individual with CRS and their families may find these issues more difficult to manage: failure to thrive feeding difficulties sleep difficulties a variety of behavioural changes. These difficulties may lead to their child being prescribed a wide range of medications. Timing of maternal infection A key factor in the nature of a baby’s CRS is the stage of pregnancy at which its mother caught the rubella virus. This determines the severity and range of impairments. If a mother is infected in the first two to ten weeks of pregnancy the virus is most likely to be transmitted to the baby, and will most likely cause substantial damage. The risk is lower between ten and 16 weeks, and the later the infection comes in this period the more likely that impairment will be limited to hearing loss. After 18 weeks there is virtually no risk. Preventing CRS The rubella vaccine was introduced in the UK in 1970 following a worldwide pandemic in the 1960s. Today, preschool children in the UK are given two doses of the MMR (mumps, measles and rubella) vaccine to prevent rubella from circulating in the community. Worldwide, the picture varies. While some regions, including much of Europe and the Americas, are on the way to eliminating rubella in their populations, other regions – especially Africa and Asia - still struggle to roll out a comprehensive immunisation programme, and CRS remains common. There are risks associated with partially successful rubella immunisation programmes. Unless a universal vaccination programme is full and sustained, the age at which people are infected by rubella gradually rises – and when an epidemic strikes the virus affects adults, including pregnant women. It is only relatively recently that we have been immunising young children, so we don’t yet know how long their immunity will last: it is quite possible that we will have to run occasional mass vaccination programme for adults too. What effects does CRS have in adulthood? There has been little research so far on the effects of CRS on adults, and it can be difficult to extract solid data from the research that has been done because definitions vary – for example, what do we mean by ‘late’ onset? However, looking at the data that we do have, we can see that people with CRS are more likely to develop diabetes and thyroid problems, and to develop them at an earlier age than other people. We need to bear in mind though that these diseases are also more common in older people in the general population, so it can be hard to tell if – in someone with CRS – they are caused by the CRS or by ageing. Other possible complications arising from CRS include: deterioration in vision, further hearing loss, changes in behaviour, epilepsy, high blood pressure, gastric problems, skeletal weakness, depression and swallowing difficulties. We need to research these complications to establish whether they are indeed a result of CRS. Perhaps they are a result of existing rubella conditions, or perhaps they are caused by the rubella virus continuing to be active in the body. Is there a link with the timing of maternal infection? Until we have scientific evidence, it’s our job to look out for these symptoms and to decide what to do about them. One final and rare complication is progressive rubella panencephalitis, a serious chronic and progressive inflammation of the brain. Symptoms include seizures, memory loss, loss of motor function and psychological changes. The frustration of others’ ignorance The incidence of CRS is low enough that many non-specialist health professionals know little about it. This can be enormously frustrating for people with CRS and their families. Linda quoted a person who also has CRS, who said that each time you see a specialist you need to do a ‘mini lecture: “My life has been defined by my CRS. What does that mean? It means that I have vision impairments, hearing deficits, emotional lability (mood swings, for example), some learning issues. I know you might not have heard of CRS, but here are some references. It would be nice for you to know about this so as we continue on this medical path together, you will know more about me and I will know that you are caring for me, learning ABOUT me, and learning FROM me." You can end it at that and then each time, you will see a partnership growing.’ This clearly had a powerful resonance for both Linda and the delegates, underlining the importance of explaining just how CRS affects people’s lives to professionals so that we can work together. Surveys and studies of CRS At the end of this opening session, we looked briefly at a number of studies of CRS. We were reminded that it is not easy to compare them because they used different sample group types, different people responded, the research was done in different years, the sample sizes varied, the ages of the people in the sample varied, as did the year in which they caught rubella. None the less, the information they produced gives us useful indicators as to the health issues we need to look out for in our work. Australia: CRS was first recognised in 1940 by Norman Gregg, an ophthalmologist. A sample group of 50 people born with CRS in 1940 has been followed up in 1967, 1991 and 2000. By the 2000 study, seven people had died from heart disease and three from other causes. Of the remaining group 32 responded to the 2000 survey, revealing that: 12 out of 32 reported cataracts or glaucoma occurring in the last ten years 86% had heart conditions, compared with 29% of the general population (this includes high cholesterol, heart disease and a variety of valve-associated problems) 22% had diabetes, compared to 13% of the general population 8 out of 11 women had an early menopause. But it needs to be remembered that few children born in 1940 with CRS survived, so this is a selective groups of survivors who do not necessarily represent the whole population now of people with CRS. USA: In 1991, 1996 and 2004 parents and guardians of deafblind people were interviewed with a mixture of physical and social questions. Most of the people with CRS were born in the 1960s. The results of the 2004 survey should be revealed at the DBI conference in Italy later in 2009. Canada: In 1997-8 the Canadian Deafblind and Rubella Association surveyed the families or carers of 100 people born with CRS, aged 5 to62 (75 per cent were born in the epidemic of the 1960s and 1970s). They found that: 21% had glaucoma 11% had a detached retina 27% had experienced a change in visual acuity from all causes 24% had experienced a change in hearing 26% had received treatment for mental health 23% reported at least one incidence of aggression, self-injury, tantrums or property destruction 30% had seizures 26% had one of scoliosis, kyphosis or lordosis (curvature of spine) 21% saw a deterioration in energy, stamina or endurance 10% had been clinically diagnosed with a thyroid dysfunction 12% had been clinically diagnosed with diabetes 7% had been clinically diagnosed with osteoporosis. These health complaints are not necessarily related to CRS – other factors may be involved. UK: The National Congenital Rubella Survelliance Programme identifies new cases of congenital rubella. There are now very few reported – one or two a year – and these are often as a result of infection abroad. Follow-up in the 1990s of people born from about 1968 to 1990 showed an increased risk of diabetes and thyroid disorders at young ages. These cases aren’t being actively followed up now as there is no funding. The programme is monitoring deaths and cancer registrations. A document called “My Health Record” was developed by Chris Fuggle (chris.fuggle@sense.org.uk) for the Sense Divisional Healthcare Strategy Group. This document is designed to aid deafblind people, staff, family and health professionals to look at an individual’s health issues in a comprehensive way. Susannah Barnett, in the Research Team, has recently launched a research study into how CRS has affected individuals in the UK. This will primarily focus on people with CRS known to Sense, but other people with CRS in the UK are welcome to be involved. For further details contact susannah.barnett@sense.org.uk Netherlands: the Netherlands Health Watch Program is a co-operation between two health departments studying 70 adults with CRS. The team carries out a physical and neurological examination and an assessment of cognitive, social-emotional and behavioural functioning. East Africa (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania): At a recent international conference delegates from east Africa asked those from the West to lobby on their behalf for help in running full immunisation programmes. In East Africa the challenges are to identify poorer deafblind people and to provide services, to empower parents to see their child’s abilities, to improve medical services – removing cataracts and dispensing low vision devices like spectacles, to monitor heart conditions and epilepsy, and to collect data on incidence and prevalence to enable them to lobby the government to include rubella in the immunisation programme. Scandinavia: The Nordic rubella network focuses primarily on late manifestations of CRS, especially behavioural and neuropsychosocial effects. The Nordic Staff Training Centre for Deafblind Services (NUD) is also looking at this area. Norwegian researchers carried out a late onset pilot study looking at eight people (out of 22 cases recorded between 1975 and 2002). They found that one person experienced further hearing loss at 15 years; two people lost their vision during their 20s; several saw worsening mobility, balance and fine motor skills; one had clinical epilepsy; one had clinical hypothyroidism; two had diabetes; four had cardiac problems; all reported emotional or psychological changes. There is more information about some of these programmes in section 12. Sharing your knowledge There are two groups online where you can share and learn more about CRS. Both are moderated by Nancy O’Donnell at the Helen Keller Centre in New York. One group is for people affected by CRS (many were at school together in Boston, USA): it’s busy, and has two key professional contributors, Nancy O’Donnell and Pam Ryan from Perkins school. The other group is for worldwide professionals working with deafblind people. To find out more about joining, email Nancy O’Donnell at HKNCNOD@aol.com . Finding out more Sense’s website: www.sense.org.uk DBI rubella network: www.deafblindinternational.org/standard/network_rubella.html Helen Keller Institute and the National Consortium on Deafblindness, USA: http://www.hknc.org/Rubella_network.html and http://nationaldb.org/ISSelectedTopics.php?topicCatID=29 NCRSP monitoring: http://www.ich.ucl.ac.uk/ich/academicunits/Paediatric_Epidemiology_and_Biostatistics/Research Endocrine problems Chris Fuggle and Gini Bartlett, Sense (with support from Thyroid UK and Diabetes UK) Summary 2 The way that hormones work in our bodies is extremely complex and not yet fully understood. We do know, however, that people with CRS are more likely to develop certain hormone-related problems, in particular thyroid problems and diabetes. The thyroid gland may become over-stimulated and over-produce thyroid hormones (hyperthyroidism), which essentially causes the body’s systems to run at high speed. Alternatively, if the thyroid is underactive (hypothyroidism) the body’s systems slow down. Both conditions can be treated with medication. Diabetes is extremely common, and is caused by a lack of insulin or the insulin in the body not working effectively. This means that the body cannot absorb glucose efficiently, and so cannot derive energy from food appropriately. Though a small proportion of diabetics need to inject insulin, most can control the problem by managing their diet, exercise and lifestyle. In detail 2 This session looked at hormonal problems that are sometimes linked with CRS, focussing on thyroid problems, diabetes and testosterone problems. The interaction between hormones is enormously complex – there are over 60 hormones recognised so far, and our understanding is still developing. The human endocrine system Our bodies need hormones for a wide range of purposes: stimulating or inhibiting cell growth and the body’s use of energy (metabolism) regulating the immune system to fight off disease enabling the body and mind to respond appropriately to situations such as threats beginning a new life stage such as puberty or the menopause regulating the reproductive system and sexual arousal. Hormones are produced in the glands which make up the endocrine system: the pineal gland, the pituitary gland, the thyroid gland, the thymus, the adrenal gland, the pancreas, the ovaries and the testes. This session focussed on the problems caused by imbalances of hormones produced in the thyroid, pancreas and testes. As well as causing physical health issues, hormonal problems may be linked to changes in people’s behaviour because they can cause increased discomfort, pain, anxiety and distress. If you have any concerns about someone’s health, you should raise these urgently with your manager and seek the appropriate medical intervention. Throughout, you should provide appropriate support to the person to deal with the diagnosis (which may involve a blood test), the symptoms and any treatment plan. Thyroid problems The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped organ on the front of the neck, lying against and around the larynx (voice box) and trachea (wind pipe). Its main function is to produce three hormones: thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine (T3) and calcitonin. The thyroid hormones affect nearly every type of body tissue. They stimulate the metabolism and are critical to normal cell functioning. Hyperthyroidism If the level of thyroid hormones is too high they can overstimulate the metabolism and affect the nervous system: just like putting your foot on the accelerator of a car, hyperthyroidism speeds up the whole body system. Common symptoms of hyperthyroidism are: goitre (inflammation of the thyroid gland) weight loss (often with increased appetite) anxiety, hyperactivity and irritability intolerance to heat, delirium and sweating heart palpitations or arrhythmias and shortness of breath fatigue, weakness, loss of libido, apathy and depression excessive thirst and urination nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. This list is important to all practitioners – we need to look out carefully for these signs. Hyperthyroidism is usually treated by radioactive iodine medications which reduce the production of thyroid hormones, or through surgery. Beta blockers may relieve the symptoms, though they don’t treat the underlying problem. There are several causes of hyperthyroidism: Graves’ disease; failure of nodes in the thyroid to shut down with age; excessive intake of thyroid hormones (prescribed to treat an underactive thyroid gland); abnormal secretions from the pituitary gland; thyroiditis (inflammation of the thyroid gland); excessive intake of iodine. Hypothyroidism If the level of thyroid hormones is too low it can interfere with or prevent growth and development. Effectively the body’s engine is running too slowly. Common symptoms of hypothyroidism are: poor muscle tone, muscle cramps or joint pain weight gain and water retention, and constipation low body temperature and increased sensitivity to cold fatigue, low mood or depression goitre thin, brittle fingernails or hair, and pale and/or dry itchy skin slow heartbeat (fewer than 60 beats per minute). Hypothyroidism is normally treated by taking thyroid hormone supplements. However, as already mentioned, if too much is taken this can lead to hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism is present in about 3 per cent of the population. The most common cause worldwide is iodine deficiency. Other causes include the autoimmune disease Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, lack of a thyroid gland, and a deficiency of hormones from either the hypothalamus or pituitary glands. Key points for practitioners – thyroid problems It is crucial to follow any guidance in the person’s care plan, and also to look for signs of: increased thirst or hunger pain or discomfort increased use of the toilet, constipation or diarrhoea weight loss or gain unusual skin temperature anxiety, etc. Any of these could be caused by numerous other issues, but we do need to monitor for these symptoms and be wary of making assumptions. For example, someone may be asking for lots of water because it’s hot, or it may be because they have an early symptom of hyperthyroidism. Diabetes We need insulin – produced in our pancreas - to process food in the cells of our bodies. If we don’t have enough insulin, or if it isn’t working properly (diabetes mellitus), our cells can’t take in and use up the glucose in our blood. This means glucose levels rise to dangerously high levels. This is called hyperglycaemia. There are two types of diabetes mellitus: Type I diabetes The pancreas becomes unable to make insulin and because there is no insulin, sugar levels rise rapidly. Type I is sometimes called ‘insulin dependent’ diabetes because the person has to inject insulin. It is usually caused by an infection, a reaction to medication or a trauma that damages the pancreas. The onset of type I is sudden, over a few weeks, and has severe symptoms. Type II diabetes The pancreas still makes some insulin but cells have become resistant to its action and sugar levels rise. The onset of type II is usually slow and most common in middle aged or elderly people - it is closely linked with being overweight. The person doesn’t usually need to inject insulin as long as they are careful with their diet, make lifestyle changes and take the right tablets – nor do they need to avoid all sugar and biscuits, but rather to monitor their overall diet carefully. Diabetes is very common: there are over 171 million cases identified worldwide. In the UK there are over 2.5 million people with diabetes, and probably over half a million more who do not yet realise they have it. Between 85 and 95 per cent of people with diabetes mellitus have type II; the rest have type I. Symptoms of diabetes The most common symptoms of diabetes are caused by the kidneys trying to remove more water from the blood in order to flush out the excess glucose. This leads to: increased thirst and so increased fluid intake frequent urination increased appetite (because the sugar in the blood isn’t reaching the cells). Other symptoms of diabetes include: weight loss (particularly noticeable in type I) tiredness and lethargy temporary blurring of vision due to dehydration of the lens in the eye itching of the genital organs and urinary tract infections such as cystitis and thrush slow healing of wounds. Health complications resulting from diabetes Most of these conditions are avoidable if the diabetes is diagnosed early enough, monitored carefully and treated effectively: cataracts, due to a build up of sugar in the eye diabetic retinopathy, where tiny haemorrhages on the retina cause damage and affect vision small blood vessels in the kidneys are damaged, which can lead to kidney failure nerve damage, leading to loss of muscle activity, decreased skin sensitivity or male impotence hardening or narrowing of the main arteries, which can increase the risk of stroke or heart attack foot problems caused by poor blood supply or nerve damage. It’s especially worth noting the problem of hardening or narrowing of arteries as many people with CRS have heart problems already. Testing and treating diabetes A standard test for diabetes is to check the person’s urine for glucose. Once diabetes is diagnosed, the standard medical interventions are: testing and recording of blood sugar levels monitoring of diet tablets (usually for type II) injection of insulin (all type I diabetics and a small number of type II diabetics) trying to lose weight stopping smoking taking regular exercise. Insulin is now usually injected using a small implement like a pen with a very fine needle Hypoglycaemia: low levels of glucose If too much insulin is injected then the levels of glucose in the blood can fall to dangerously low levels. This is called hypoglycaemia. It can also be caused by injecting the right amount of insulin then doing an unexpected amount of exercise. Indicators of hypoglycaemia are: sweating or clammy skin going pale shaking confusion unsteadiness lack of co-operation and irritability – can seem drunk rapid pulse blurring of vision headache eventually, loss of consciousness. To treat someone who is hypoglycaemic: get them to stop any dangerous activity and to avoid physical exertion make the environment as safe as possible offer a sugary drink (Hypostop if prescribed, or a can of coke) and then a snack if possible monitor blood sugar level if possible. If the person is unconscious: give nothing by mouth use emergency first aid procedures dial 999 for an ambulance. Key points for practitioners to watch out for – diabetes It is crucial to follow any guidance in the person’s care plan about diet and exercise, and also to look for any unusual signs – increased thirst, use of the toilet or hunger; worsening vision; genital itching or urine infection – ensure that the person is supported to bathe well. In addition you need to ensure that medication is given correctly, and be prepared to give any emergency first aid treatment. Don’t jump to conclusions Though you need to watch out for the symptoms of diabetes, as ever it is important not to jump to conclusions. Other factors affecting glucose levels include: diet illness exercise travel stress alcohol altered or missed mealtimes missed medication. So keep watching, note down what you see, and take your observations to your manager or a doctor. Reproductive Hormones CRS seems to cause problems with reproductive hormones later life. In a survey of 60 people aged between 27 and 44 years, ten of the 27 women showed signs of pre-menstrual syndrome, and one had already experienced early menopause; five of the 33 men had lost testosterone. Testosterone levels usually fall in men from the age of about 60, but for individuals with CRS this may happen much earlier. The symptoms are: tiredness weakness mood swings loss of libido. As pointed out by one participant, Oliver Walder, women with CRS can also have too much testosterone, which can cause hirsutism (hairiness). Testosterone case study Gini Bartlett talked about one person’s experience of losing testosterone. Mr C had been healthy until relatively recently, when his behaviour changed, and he also started to wet himself for the first time. When health professionals carried out a blood and urine test he was found to be diabetic. While they had his blood sample they also tested for other conditions and they found that he also had very low levels of testosterone. They suspected that this might explain the recent change in behaviour. The chosen treatment for his low testosterone was three-weekly injections into the buttocks, which was initially difficult for everyone, but staff supported him well. From the third injection, Mr C recognised the man who did the injections, followed him to the room, pulled down his trousers ready and stuck his bottom out independently – he seems to recognise that the injections are doing him good. Mr C continues to show some challenging behaviour on occasions, but his mood swings have greatly improved. Feedback from delegates Lots of delegates apparently now fear that they too may have endocrine problems! This highlights the need for careful monitoring and not making assumptions Given the difficulty of supporting someone with CRS to have a blood test, maybe Sense should consider campaigning with medical professionals to set up an annual CRS blood test to screen for all likely problems? Chris explained that if he delivered the session again he would like to give more time to the floor – it really was an information-packed session! More information on diabetes and thyroid problems You can find a great deal of useful information and support from specialist organisations: Diabetes UK Macleod House, 10 Parkway, London NW1 7AA Tel 020 7424 1000 Fax 020 7424 1001 Email info@diabetes.org.uk (if you use aol, Diabetes UK recommends that you write or use the phone) Web www.diabetes.org.uk Thyroid UK 32 Darcy Road St Osyth Clacton On Sea Essex CO16 8QF Tel 01255 820407 (permanent answerphone) Web www.thyroiduk.org Vision Lucy Butler, consultant ophthalmologist Mary Foster, Sense West multi-sensory impairment advisor Lucy and Mary work closely together in Birmingham Lucy talked about the eye conditions that people with CRS have. Mary contributed case studies and suggestions for practitioners. Summary 3 A defining feature of CRS is the eye problems that people are born with. For example, many babies are born with cataracts – which nowadays are operated on, and replacement lenses inserted. Some babies may be born with small eye and most have some vision problems. As people with CRS grow older it seems that they are more prone to other eye conditions than the general population. The most common conditions in people with CRS are cataracts, glaucoma and retinal detachment. In addition, because more people with CRS develop diabetes, they are more likely to develop diabetic retinopathy. It is therefore crucial that everyone with CRS has regular eye checks. For some people these eye checks can be difficult – it is not unusual for people to be uncomfortable in a clinical setting, and all eye tests require some degree of co-operation – but it is worthwhile for everyone. The key to successful eye checks is to build good relations with the eye clinic and to prepare well. It is also important to be aware of the signs of deteriorating vision – such as a person becoming clumsier, or finding it hard to judge the height of steps and curbs. Staff need to watch out for these symptoms and to seek help urgently as they can indicate a serious problem that needs immediate treatment. In detail Lucy Butler looks after children and adults with CRS, and has been struck by the range of ways in which people are affected in their eyes. She suspects that the nature of damage to the eyes reflects the stage of pregnancy at which the mother contracted rubella. If she contracted rubella early in pregnancy, the whole eye will be affected – for example someone may have a small eye (microphthalmus). If she contracted rubella later in pregnancy the child may just get ‘salt and pepper’ type pattern on the retina. This is officially called Rubella Retinopathy but sometimes reffered to as ‘salt and pepper retinopathy’ or ‘salt and pepper maculopathy’ – depending on the actual part of the eye affected. This is only visible to the ophthalmologist. The most common eye problems resulting from CRS are: cataract glaucoma retinal detachment. In addition, people with CRS are more prone to diabetes, which can in turn cause eye problems. The eye At the front of the eye is the cornea – this is where a contact lens would sit. In the middle is a hole – the iris. Behind the iris is the focussing lens: a cataract is when this lens is cloudy – there may simply be a tiny fleck, which causes no visual problems, or the lens may be milky white, which significantly affects vision. Behind the lens is a vitreous jelly – this is where people experience floaters. The lining at the back of the eye is the retina. This is developed as part of the brain, and works all the time whether the person is asleep or awake, and whether it is light or dark. Fifty per cent of the human brain is devoted to vision in one way or another. Cataract Cataracts are common at birth in people with CRS, and many children will need surgery. We can now often replace the lens – in the past this wasn’t possible so many adults with CRS have thick glasses or contact lenses to compensate. Cataract surgery carries the risk of causing other conditions, including glaucoma and retinal detachment. Glaucoma Glaucoma describes increased pressure in the eye which causes the death of eye nerves. It is a very slow and quiet process so people don’t realise they have glaucoma until they lose their vision. The damage to the eye nerves works from the outside in, causing tunnel vision – seeing with glaucoma is rather like seeing through a loosely clenched hand. If someone is losing their sight from the edges they may appear to become clumsy because they no longer see things on the edge of their vision and perhaps don’t realise it. Glaucoma generally affects both eyes at the same time. Although we can treat glaucoma we can only control the pressure – we can’t reverse the effects. It is therefore essential to test regularly for glaucoma in order to detect and treat it early. Glaucoma case study An example of how effective support was provided for an eye examination at the eye hospital. T is a 46 yr old woman with CRS. She is profoundly deaf and communicates through touch, a few tactual signs and objects of reference. T has Glaucoma, dense corneal opacities and horizontal nystagmus. Her left eye is enlarged – bupthalmus and her right eye is small – micropthalmus. T has Hypromellose eye drops and eye ointment for both eyes, Timoptol for her left eye. She has light perception only. It is important to check the health of T’s eyes regularly. For many years, it had not been possible to do this because of T’s anxiety when in the hospital setting, lack of preparation, ineffective support and standard procedures were not adapted. After a coordinator with some expertise was appointed to manage the vision service, a successful examination took place. How staff prepare for successful eye exams 1. We contacted the clinic to discuss preparation for the appointment with staff with the aim of reducing waiting times and the T’s anxiety levels. We would preferably liaise with a named person. 2. We arrived on time and spoke to the named contact. 3. We discussed possible procedures with the ophthalmologist – T would not be able to cooperate using standard methods. We agreed to use an alternative i.e. anaesthetise surface of eye with drops and use of a toner pen to test pressures. 4. The care worker used the same procedure that she uses at T’s home to administer eye drops – two taps on the side of T’s eye. 5. T wanted to use touch to find out about the ophthalmologist and the Sense coordinator explained the reasons for this. 6. T became more relaxed and allowed the ophthalmologist to examine her eyes. The eye examination revealed that T had glaucoma and that her vision has deteriorated because the glaucoma hadn’t been picked up. Retinal detachment Retinal detachment affects the edges of the vision. It normally affects only one eye. The person will see a patch of their vision go, often starting at the top like a swag of fabric falling, and moving into the middle. Someone who is experiencing a detached retina may have difficulty in judging distances and depths so they may tend to use a broad sweep of the head to compensate. They may have particular problems with the heights of curbs and stairs because they can’t judge the height or whether they go up or down. If someone is experiencing a retinal detachment it is very important to get treatment as soon as possible in order to get the best outcome – ideally within 24 to 48 hours. Some people experience a detached vitreous. In itself this won’t cause a loss of vision, but the vitreous is loosely connected to the retina and when it detaches it may pull away from the retina and detach it. Retinal detachment case study This is an example of how swift action based on clear guidelines for people with CRS saved this person’s sight. R is a 31-year-old man with CRS. He has severe hearing impairment and communicates through sign and gesture, pointing and using a light writer. R was born with bilateral cataracts which were removed at 8 months. He has no vision in his left eye. He does have vision in his right eye and wears bifocal spectacles, prescription +8.75. R has an annual eye examination in his home, provided by a domiciliary eye care service. He becomes anxious in clinical settings and this has a significant impact on his behaviour. Each time R has his eyes tested he needs to be reminded about the expectations and have it demonstrated by his carer. The eye test is carried out using a Snellen chart but is adapted to enable R to succeed. Cards with letters of various sizes are placed in front of R and he points to the letter on the card that is the same. His carer encourages him and the test is successful. What happened and how we managed it: 7. Functional vision observations by R’s care staff during daily routines revealed that R’s vision might have deteriorated – for example he was not able to reach accurately for his cup. 8. This was reported to the manager who called the named person in the region for advice. 9. They were advised to take R to the eye hospital ASAP. In the hospital, R became anxious during a long wait to be seen. The professional who attempted to examine his eyes referred R back to see his optometrist to establish if there was indeed any change. 10. Guidelines for people with CRS are in place in this Sense region and the Registered Care Manger understood that swift action was important as there could be a risk of detached retina. 11. He again rang the named person in the region for advice and she suggested they call the hospital and ask to speak to the named consultant ophthalmologist who had experience of working with people who are deafblind in the region. 12. This was done and the consultant ophthalmologist suggested that she visit R in his home where she was able to examine his eyes. His retina had detached. 13. R was referred back to the eye dept for urgent surgery which was highly successful – in fact his vision seems better than before. Losing central vision When someone loses their central vision this affects their ability to see detail, to read, and to see colour. They may well still be able to navigate around. A common cause of central vision loss is diabetes, which causes abnormal bleeding at the back of the eye from new blood vessels. Rarely, people with pepper and salt on their retina may get blood vessels forming on the back of the eye, which causes macular changes like those experienced by people with macular degeneration. If someone loses central vision in only one eye, and both eyes had the same vision before, it can be hard to spot the problem. It needs urgent assessment though a proper eye examination. The treatment is an injection to the eye under a general anaesthetic. Taking someone for an eye examination It is very worth while preparing before a visit to an eye clinic. It’s helpful to give the person who will be tested accurate information about what the test will involve as far as possible. And it’s useful to tell the professionals what they might expect too – for example that someone may react to the test in a certain way. On the day: take a summary of functional vision assessments and history support the person with someone who knows them well use an appropriate communication method and provide information for the person put the person at ease – find a comfortable position, supply a cup of tea? give time for the person to adjust to an unfamiliar environment - they may need to investigate /touch discuss how to adapt standard procedures for the person to make the examination possible take something familiar or motivating to encourage a good head position for the examination explain and/or demonstrate the procedure/expectations during the sight test or examination professionals – be flexible! ask the ophthalmologist/optometrist to provide an explanation of the eye condition, prognosis and possible implications for the person’s vision. Comments and suggestions arising from group discussion Many hospitals don’t like to do eye test on people with complex needs and communication difficulties, which means that often no one picks up on deterioration of vision. Part of the problem is that a lot of modern tests require quite a lot of input and concentration – this is especially the case with visual field tests. Though you do need a degree of co-operation it’s always worth trying. If an eye hospital says that it can’t deal with someone with CRS this is may be a case of discrimination: everyone has the right to medical care. It’s certainly not good medical practice. The answer to this is to educate professionals – but some people felt frustrated by the need constantly to explain and educate. People in hospital don’t seem to understand that when you take off your glasses you can’t hear or see. It was suggested that we ask for longer appointments. However it seems that in a hospital setting this is often impossible because the bookings are done centrally by computer, and the system automatically allocates a standard time. Lucy Butler commented that the doctor may not even have seen the letter from the doctor until you sit down in the clinic – the system is no longer flexible. Lucy Butler wondered if a DVD for carers and support workers about a trip to an eye clinic might be useful, to show what’s involved. There was general enthusiasm about this. One delegate talked about the fact that the worst problems happen on the ward after eye surgery. They found that staff in the eye clinic were more accepting than ward staff. It’s also hard when the best clinical advice is to lie still in a particular position after the operation but the person wants to get out. It can be very intensive for staff – for example to prevent someone from rubbing their eyes. It will be hard – the only help is to ask lots of questions in advance to find out what will happen and what support will be needed. We hope that we will be able to identify someone in each region who will take responsibility for knowing who to refer to – this is likely to be a consultant specialising in MSIs. It’s important to develop a relationship with your local hospital so that you don’t get sent away as R was – we need to give them information and to get them on our side. Feedback from delegates Many delegates were interested in sharing ways of preparing people for medical exams – this information was very useful. There was also much discussion about how to collaborate more effectively with other professionals. The lack of time during an appointment was a real challenge. Communication passports are very useful to save endless repetition when dealing with healthcare professionals. Further information on vision The RNIB has an excellent range of factsheets and leaflets, and more advice on its website. It’s worth contacting its Multiple Disability Service at 224 Great Portland Street London W1W 5AA Tel 020 7388 1266 www.rnib.org.uk and www.rnib.org.uk/multdis Useful RNIB Focus factsheets are: Looking for eye problems in people with learning difficulties How to get the best out of sight testing for people with learning difficulties Questions to ask the Optometrist after the eye test of an adult with learning difficulties Obtaining services for people who have sight problems and additional needs Making sense of prescriptions for spectacles Minimising problems in eye surgery for adults with severe learning disabilities 4 Hearing Jenny Fletcher, Sense West Deafblind Consultant (Part of this presentation was based on material prepared by Susannah Barnett) Summary 4 Ear problems are the most common effect of CRS and are present from birth. Because both the inner and middle ear may be damaged this may cause problems not only with hearing but also with balance and movement. As people get older they may also experience age-related hearing loss and loss caused by damage to the ears by loud or persistent noise. The most common ear problems experienced by people with CRS are tinnitus, recruitment (where certain frequencies are very loud), loss of balance, auditory processing disorder, and problems with integrating the senses. It is often hard to tell the effects of damage to the ear as clinical tests are at best a rough guide. We therefore also carry out extensive functional tests to see how someone hears, and how different situations affect this. In detail 4 How does CRS affect the ear? The damage to the ear caused by CRS can affect: the inner ear – the cochlea the middle ear – the semi-circular canals. Most people with CRS have some degree of hearing problems because the inner ear is damaged. (The cochlea develops in the first three months of pregnancy.) The damage to the middle ear can cause problems with movement, head position, speed and balance, postural control and mobility. Damage to the ear can lead to ongoing ear infections, self-injurious behaviours, tinnitus, auditory processing disorder (APD), difficulty in integrating the senses and non-use of hearing. And like everyone else, people with CRS can experience age-related hearing loss. How much is people’s hearing impaired? Most people with CRS have impaired hearing, but the level of impairment differs from person to person. Typically a person arriving at Sense is diagnosed as having a profound hearing loss, but it can be hard to tell if they had a proper assessment as records can be very patchy. The clinical diagnosis often doesn’t seem to match the person in front of us. It cannot be precise and can be affected by communication issues. For example it is difficult to carry out pure tonal audiometry with someone severely affected by CRS. Audiograms can give a benchmark, but do not tell the whole story. When we take someone for an audiogram, do they understand what is needed? For example, one person may always want to say the right thing, so says ‘yes, yes, yes’; another is not very expressive so sits and smiles. We need to use hearing tests – but also to observe people’s functional hearing carefully. What problems do people have with their ears? Tinnitus Many profoundly deaf people have tinnitus. It can be extremely irritating, and is often worse when the person is not focussed on anything else. This is a particular problem when trying to go to sleep in a quiet room. One way of relieving the effect is to use distraction – for example by playing a low sound in the bedroom. Certain sounds can trigger tinnitus because of their frequency and vibrations – one delegate realised that her daughter’s tendency to vocalise in church is almost certainly a response to tinnitus brought on by the church organ playing. Age-related hearing loss Everyone’s hearing declines after the age of 21 so that people who already have congenital hearing loss may also acquire an age-related hearing loss. This is made more likely by damage to the ear caused by infections, and by wear and tear. With age-related hearing loss people lose the ability to hear high frequency sounds first. If someone makes a continual loud noise on the same frequency they may eventually lose the ability to hear that frequency. Recruitment Many people with CRS experience recruitment, which causes a particular frequency of sound to be especially loud. The effect can be so strong that it is painful. If someone wears hearing aids, and they amplify a sound to a level where it can be heard, the person may hear this as a very loud sound. This can cause people to reject hearing aids if the sound is so loud that it is painful. Vestibular (middle ear) problems If someone is having problems with their middle ear this may affect them in various ways. The most obvious is that they may lose their sense of balance – when this happens people feel grotty and don’t want to move around. If someone refuses to get up, even though they would normally be enthusiastic about whatever activity is on offer, they may be having vestibular problems. Another symptom can be that they walk very slowly, and in a shuffle. Some people respond to vestibular problems by rocking and spinning – and as a result may be wrongly diagnosed as having autism. Vestibular problems may also affect the fine central vision and lead to motion sickness. Auditory processing disorder (APD) APD is a difficulty in processing heard information. It is rarely noted in people’s records but is none the less common. Integrating the senses People with CRS may find it difficult to integrate their senses, which can mean that they do not use their hearing. It is easier to play with vision – you can look through things, use colours, etc. But hearing may simply seem to be a source of pain, so people may switch it off. Jenny works with a 19-year-old who had functioned as profoundly deaf, but now they know she has a moderate hearing loss. Her vision was the dominant sense – she loved it and played with lights, etc. and didn’t use her hearing. Diabetes People who have diabetes are more vulnerable to hearing loss – we need to be aware of this in the people we support. Assessing hearing It is vital that everyone’s hearing be tested as accurately as possible so that we can tell whether they need any aids, whether their hearing is deteriorating, and whether they are making the best of their hearing. This is often a process of adding up a range of tests and observations to create a full picture as no one test or assessment tells you everything. When taking someone for a hearing test adapt the guidelines given for eye tests in section 3 – the same principles apply. Clinical assessments There is a huge range of tests used to assess hearing. These include: newborn baby hearing screening (NBHS) neo-natal screening otoaccoustic emissions distraction test (8-10 months) co-operative test (18 months – 2 ½ years) performance test (2 ½ years) free-field audiometry pure tone audiometry bone conduction impediance audiometry brain stem evoked response. If someone cannot participate in normal testing methods there are other options which should be used as it is extremely important that people’s hearing be as thoroughly assessed as possible. We can test hearing by putting electrodes on the person’s head. These pick up the brain’s response when sounds are delivered through headphones. This is painless and can be done under general anaesthetic. This is called evoked response audiometry. The audiograms produced as a result of these tests are very variable in quality. As they are used to prescribe hearing aids, the resulting aids may be of limited use – this may cause someone to reject them. Functional assessments We cannot depend on clinical assessments alone: we must carry out regular functional assessments too. Functional assessments have the advantage that they are carried out under a variety of conditions, using a variety of stimuli and responses. In a functional assessment we compare a person’s response in one situation to their response in another. We take into account their motivation, their other disabilities, their understanding and any other factors which affect how someone hears. When carrying out an observational assessment we look for changes in awareness by observing body movements. Someone may: reach seek a sound source by moving towards it startle wince turn their head and body show a dislike for a sound still to a sound. We also look at facial expressions: eye movement – shift, widen, blink, raised eyebrows smile grimace. We observe any increase, decrease or cessation of activity: sucking breathing pattern quietening when sound presented or ceased body movements. And we observe vocalisations: laughing crying shouting cooing grinding teeth. Sense services have sound level meters which are useful when carrying out a functional assessment as they tell us just how loud every noise is – our brain usually tunes in only to key sounds, and the sound monitor will tell you which are the loudest in the room where an assessment is being carried out. It could easily be a packet of crisps being eaten! And if you leave the meter in a room where people are watching television you will be amazed at the volume of the television and how loudly people talk about the programmes. Effects on behaviour It can be hard to tell how someone’s hearing is affected but their behaviour can give us clues – although there can be so many reasons for a behaviour that we should not leap to conclusions. If someone starts banging their head or ears this can be a sign of an ear infection and staff should investigate. Jenny described a child she worked with in an education unit. No one had noticed her deafblindness and because her ear problems were not being addressed she suffered recurring ear infections. The child responded to the pain of these infections by banging her head – which staff labelled challenging behaviour. Some people may bang their head to stimulate their inner ear because their middle ear has been compromised by infections. Some people make high pitched vocalisations which seem to imitate tinnitus. Or they may injure themselves in response to the tinnitus. Hearing aids There is a wide range of hearing aids available, including: post aural digital hearing aids bone conductor radio aids FM systems sound field systems loops cochlear implants. The discussion focussed primarily on the virtues of radio aids. Jenny feels strongly that radio aids can be extremely useful, though it can take a lot of fighting to get them, and people can need a fair amount of support. Jenny would expect children in school to use a radio aid as a matter of course. They’re especially good in groups and in large areas – and very useful for deafblind people because they help them to identify the source of a sound. In a seminar group of 29 people only one person supported someone who uses a radio aid – Jenny felt that there should be more. If a local authority will not fund aids this could be a child protection issue because the child is not being helped with its health and development. Mentioning this might help get aids a bit more quickly. We speculated about whether there might also be an adult protection issue here when adults are refused funding for aids. Some children are now being fitted with cochlear implants as are a few adults. The main issue is getting used to them and learning to use them. ‘Hearing aids are not very nice to wear. Everyone thinks they’re the best thing since sliced bread. But you get hot ears, itchy, and sweaty. And sometimes you want to throw them across the room. If I find it difficult, how much more is it for children? I can’t manage without them but I don’t like them either.’ Margaret Kennedy, delegate with CRS Feedback from delegates One delegate commented ‘I learned more about hearing issues than I ever thought about before.’ Many delegates found the information on the possible effects of tinnitus and recruitment on behaviour particularly interesting. Heart conditions Linda Long, Sense Scotland Summary 5 This workshop looked at the type of heart problems that people with CRC may experience, and also provided advice about how to support a deafblind person who is receiving treatment in hospital. The most common difficulties are: patent ductus arteriosus (PDA): the child has a hole in the heart that has to be closed by surgery or some type of plug. pulmonary artery stenosis: this is where there a narrowing of an artery causes reduced blood flow to the lungs and puts a strain on the heart. The artery can be widened by inflating a balloon via a catheter. As well as this medical information, there were a number of useful discussions about how to support a deafblind person who is receiving treatment in hospital – such as familiarising them with the room where they will be staying. In detail If a woman catches rubella during the first trimester of her pregnancy it is common for the child’s heart to be affected. The heart is a complicated organ, and many different problems can be caused by the virus. In some cases, children will require surgery whilst very young. Two of the most common conditions are patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) (which half of people with CRS have) and peripheral pulmonary artery stenosis. Some individuals will have difficulties with their heart valves. Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) Every baby is born with a small hole in their heart between the proximal left pulmonary artery and the descending aorta. This is normally open when the baby is growing in the womb and should close after birth. With PDA this hole doesn’t close up, which allows blood to pass from the high pressure aorta into the low pressure pulmonary – which increases the blood flow to the lungs. If the flow is small there are no problems. If there is a large flow then the child will be breathless and have poor weight gain. If the tube (ductus) is still open more than three months after birth it is unlikely to close on its own. In this case, doctors will advise that the hole is closed up – either by surgery, or via the catheter method in the groin using either coils or plugs. In adulthood Life expectancy is normal in people who had surgery or catheter closure, or a PDA in infancy or early childhood. People who have had a surgical closure may need to see a cardiologist from time to time as some residual problems may persist or develop. People who have devices in situ (such as a plug) should also be considered for follow-up as the long term outcome of device closure remains unknown. PDA in later life Some people may discover they have a PDA later in life. A moderate sized PDA may cause someone to have symptoms such as shortness of breath and palpitations. People with small, silent PDAs have a normal life expectancy and do not need any intervention or specific precautions. A large PDA in adults is rare, as most will have been repaired in infancy. The treatment will depend on the size of the PDA. Before a patient has surgery they would be fully investigated as closure can be contra-indicated for some patients. The following should be carried out before any decision is made: chest x-ray an electrocardiogram (ECG) (tracing of the heart rhythm) an echocardiogram (ECHO) (scan of the heart similar to the ultrasound pregnant women have). The PDA may be closed with stitches during surgery. Another option is to insert a narrow tube (a cardiac catheter) via the groin and to push it up to the heart to deliver a coil which blocks the hole. What about exercise? People with a closed or small PDA do not generally have any exercise restrictions. If in doubt seek advice from a specialist cardiologist. Pulmonary artery stenosis Pulmonary artery stenosis is a narrowing (stenosis) that occurs in the pulmonary artery, a large artery that sends oxygen-poor blood into the lungs to be enriched with oxygen. The narrowing may occur in the main pulmonary artery and/or in the left or right pulmonary artery branches. This narrowing makes it difficult for blood to reach the lungs to pick up oxygen. Without enough oxygen, the heart and body cannot function as they should. In an effort to overcome the narrowing, the pressure in the right ventricle (the chamber that pumps blood into the pulmonary arteries) rises to levels that can be damaging to the heart muscle. Symptoms of pulmonary artery stenosis If the narrowing in the artery is less than 50 per cent, a child may not experience any symptoms. However, if the narrowing of the artery is more than 50 per cent, a child may have any of the following symptoms: shortness of breath fatigue heavy or rapid breathing rapid heart rate swelling in the feet, ankles, face, eyelids, and/or abdomen. Diagnosis and investigations During a routine examination, a child’s doctor may hear abnormal heart sounds (a murmur) when listening to the heart. If abnormal sounds are identified, a doctor may order other tests that can include: an electrocardiogram (ECG) chest X-ray an echocardiogram Doppler ultrasound - a test that uses sound waves to measure blood flow; usually combined with echocardiogram to evaluate both the internal structure of the heart and blood flow across the heart’s valves and vessels cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - a test that uses three-dimensional imaging to reveal how blood flows through the heart and vessels and how the heart is working CT scan - an x-ray procedure that combines many x-ray images with the aid of a computer to generate cross-sectional views of the heart. Cardiac CT uses the advanced CT technology with intravenous (IV) contrast (dye) to visualize cardiac anatomy, coronary circulation, and great vessels cardiac catheterization - a procedure that involves inserting a thin tube (a catheter) into a vein or artery and passing it into the heart to sample the level of oxygen, measure pressure changes, and make x-ray movies of the heart and its internal structures pulmonary angiography - a dye-enhanced x-ray of the pulmonary arteries and veins of the heart perfusion scan - a test in which the patient is injected with a small amount of a radioactive material. A special machine shows how well blood is flowing through each of the two lungs. How is the stenosis treated? After referral to a congenital heart specialist, the treatment will be dependent on the symptoms and characteristics of the stenosis. Balloon dilation - this consists of moving a balloon dilation catheter into the narrowed area of the artery. The balloon is carefully inflated - first under low pressure and then under higher pressure - until the narrowed area is widened. The balloon is then deflated and removed. Although the narrowing is improved in a majority of patients following balloon dilation, over time the artery can again become narrow in as many as 15 per cent to 20 per cent of cases, requiring further ballooning. Different types of balloons are currently being developed that will likely lead to better and longer-lasting results. Balloon dilation and stent placement - in an effort to improve on the results of balloon dilation, a search for a more effective treatment led to the development of a stainless steel balloon-expandable stent. The stent is placed across the narrowed segment of the artery. The stent is mounted on a balloon angioplasty catheter and covered with a sheath as it is moved into position. The sheath then is withdrawn off the stent-balloon angioplasty assembly and the balloon is inflated to its recommended pressure, expanding the stent and anchoring it in place. Surgery - various methods of surgical repair of pulmonary artery stenosis are used, depending on the characteristics of the stenosis and the surrounding vessels and other structures. Other heart difficulties Jane Mulholland, who attended this discussion group, spoke about other heart difficulties her son Roger has experienced. In addition to PDA he has also had heart murmurs which are caused by his heart valves not working properly. He has had a number of operations for this. He has also suffered from a number of infections to his heart valves which can be picked up from infected blood. This has been triggered by dental work in the past, so Roger now receives antibiotics before undergoing dental treatment. Supporting the deafblind person with treatment As well as talking about specific heart conditions, Jane Mulholland spoke about how hospital procedures and stays might be handled. She emphasised how important it is for the individual to be prepared for any procedures as much as possible. This might include visiting the unit where an operation will take place, perhaps showing photographs of where someone might sleep, explaining things and so on. Where possible a parent or carer should stay with the deafblind person in hospital. A good place to start to try to set this sort of thing up with a hospital is by contacting their PALS office (Patient Advice and Liaison Service). Feedback from delegates Delegates were keen to have more information about circulatory problems. They were also clear about the importance of improving communication with medical doctors , and sharing strategies for doing this. Handy heart sites www.mayoclinic.com/health/congenital-heart-defects/CC00026 http://kidshealth.org/kid/htbw/heart.html http://video.about.com/heartdisease/How-the-Heart-Functions.htm www.bbc.co.uk/health/conditions/heart/aboutheart_index1.shtml It’s also worth looking at the British Heart Foundation’s information – they have some excellent leaflets. Healthy living and the role of health detectives Linda Long, Health Development Officer and Paul Hart, Principal Officer, Sense Scotland Summary 6 This wide-ranging session moved away from the medical focus of the previous sessions to reinforce the importance of living healthily: making friends, keeping active, eating and drinking well and having a sense of purpose. ‘Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.’ (WHO, 1948) Communication is at the root of healthy living – without it we cannot form relationships, make friends, or carry out meaningful tasks. By enabling people to take part in activities and to meet others while doing so we can help them to build relationships, develop their communication skills, and to find a sense of self through meaningful activities. When everyone – service users and staff - enjoys activities and those activities are memorable people build stronger relationships. The session emphasised the crucial role that staff play in acting as health detectives – observing and recording what they see, and reflecting on it to find out what health issues people may have, and what we can do to help them. It also gave tips on how to be taken seriously when working with health professionals. In detail 6 After a day of looking at the medical implications of CRS, this session turned to look at health and healthy living. Linda and Paul were enthusiastic advocates of our role as health detectives – people who work together to watch, listen and think about the health of the people we support – and about our own health. Linda quoted the World Health Organisation’s definition of health: ‘Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.’ (WHO, 1948) She commented that it would maybe be hard to attain complete well-being – but it’s something to aim for. The poster opposite says it all – and is not limited to mental health: Linda and Paul often use it when promoting all round good health. The poster shows 10 ways to look after your wellbeing: talking about your feelings; keeping active; eating well; drinking sensibly; keeping in touch with friends and loved ones; asking for help; taking a break; doing something you are good at; accepting who you are; and caring for others. They identified communication as the central issue in people’s lives, with relationships and enjoying a sense of purpose also being important. CRS and behaviour Over the years Linda and Paul have seen many people who have been excluded from schools for their behaviour. For example one young man broke the windows every week – and really loved breaking fire alarms to see everyone out on the lawns. Another would vomit and bite if someone got close – his way of keeping himself safe. Another, a placid 17-year-old was excluded for aggressive behaviour to others and especially to toilet cisterns. They saw lots of behaviours, in particular in teenagers and people in their early 20s: problems with paying attention apparently autistic behaviours mood disorders aggressive behaviours random purposeless movements ritualistic behaviours self injury sexual frustration tantrums (please can we change this to “sudden emotional oubursts”) Why do people show these behaviours? They are distressing for everyone, including the person with CRS. Is it perhaps an effect of the continuing activity of the rubella virus? Or is it due to the person’s age and stage of physical or emotional development? Or are there underlying health issues? Or underlying communication or deafblind issues? Being a health detective It’s down to us to try and figure out what’s happening – to act as health detectives. They defined a health detective as: ‘... someone using different tools to find the cause of health disturbances and to restore the balance to health, well-being and healing on physical, emotional, mental and spiritual levels. If we can find what is causing your health disturbance – then we can treat it.’ In order to become a reflective detective we need to apply the basic principles of deafblind education: routine, consistency, and keeping communication as our central focus. The value of communication To illustrate the value of communication Paul showed us a video of a Ruth, a woman with CRS in her mid 40s with whom he works. She has been supported by Sense for four years, and over the last 18 months they have made great strides together. When Paul first met Ruth, if she really wanted something like a cup of tea she would probably bang the table or herself, or would do something towards you to show that she was unhappy. Paul sees Ruth every two weeks and over time they have built up a routine where they go for a walk in a local gorge. At first they went for five minutes; now they walk for an hour or more. And the walk always ends with lunch and a nice cup of tea. The video shows Paul and Ruth in the cafe after their walk – and shows that Ruth has learnt to trust communication. She persisted in asking Paul to get her a cup of tea, secure in the knowledge that he will understand and respond. A year before she would not have kept asking calmly but would probably have banged her head. Ruth hasn’t had much effective education. In fact Paul suspects that she doesn’t have much of a learning difficulty apart from that which results from deafblindness (due to the lack of input) and the lack of educational input. The video shows how communication can help someone to lead a healthy life. The value of keeping active – and enjoying it Keeping active makes you feel good. To illustrate this, we watched a video of a 60-year-old woman with CRS trampolining, accompanied by staff who had been trained by a physio. The smiles on everyone’s faces showed how much they enjoyed their weekly session. Apparently it’s flavour of the month all over the country. It’s also very good for constipation! Sense Scotland don’t stop at trampolining – we also saw another pair of people, Peter and Joe, rock climbing and walking in the woods. Paul commented that it’s important to follow your staff’s passions – Joe is a member of staff who loves to climb, so he takes people climbing. It makes a big difference to the conversation you can have with the deafblind person if you’re both excited by what you’re doing. On his first attempt at climbing we saw Peter climb half way up, slip and dangle on the rope. Next time he did the same and dangled in the air – we might assume that he’s missed the point of climbing. Or maybe he’s found a great new way of enjoying it. What would be the point of getting to the top for a deafblind man? It’s important to do the things that you’re good at: we heard the story of two 24 year olds who both had a dream of being a rockstar. One said he really wanted to get married, to be a rockstar and to drive a really fast car. He’s now in his 40s and has a band which plays in clubs in Glasgow. Lewis isn’t yet married, though it’s not for want of proposing. And he can’t drive because of his visual impairment. But for his 40th birthday he got a limo, champagne and women in the back – he was living the life of a rockstar. The other 24-year-old was Paul, and he still works for Sense and doesn’t have a rock band! It’s important not to make assumptions about what people might enjoy. For example, on the way to eat, Irene always feels the radiators and windows repeatedly. This might be something neurological. Or maybe she’s working out the weather? Or maybe it’s just enjoyable? The value of friendships and relationships The value of friendship cannot be over-estimated – and friendship can be enormously hard for someone who is deafblind. It is much easier to develop friendships and relationships by doing activities together. The activity is almost irrelevant – the goal is to meet up with others. The challenge for staff is to make sure that this happens. ‘Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, art ... it has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.’ CS Lewis Developing activities helps deafblind people to build connections with others and with the external environment. It helps us all to develop authentic relationships. And it helps people to create a sense of personal identity. Staff need to: help service users to develop and sustain friendships support people to organise activities together follow up by spending time together to remember how they enjoyed the activity. We watched videos of the Getting together project, which brought 12 young people together weekly. Seven of them were deafblind and two had CRS. Staff were told to back off as much as possible so that the young people were in control. We saw three of the group visiting the Burrell collection and exploring the sculptures. They compared themselves to the sculptures – with particular attention to bottoms! – and made themselves into the positions taken by the sculptures. The following week the group followed up the visit with a drama activity. During another session service users made papier mache masks in response to those they had seen in Kelvin Grove. The staff try to make tasks so memorable that there is something to talk about later. We saw the service users having great fun playing with the strips of paper – some were completely covered and laughing. We saw the value of staff taking the back seat when one of the group began turning the lights on and off for fun. Rather than intervening, staff watched to see what would happen. Eventually another member of the group became distressed and left. One young man who had been turning the lights off – who had just been diagnosed with autism – asked his worker if he’d made the other person upset by turning the lights off. Not only did the group members reinforce their relationships and communication skills, they learnt about the effects of their actions on other people – and staff observed understanding of another person in someone who might have been assumed to find such understanding hard. When service users were asked for feedback about the group’s activities they said that though the activities were not irrelevant, the main thing for them was getting together with others. Healthy eating and drinking Eating and drinking healthily can be an issue for people with CRS. While some consume too much, it’s also common for people to be unenthusiastic about eating, or to only want to eat certain things. However not only is eating and drinking well good for your health, but also mealtimes are the perfect opportunity to communicate with others. We watched a video made by people with CRS to show others how to cook with a microwave, a George Foreman grill and a smoothie maker and to demonstrate how making food can be easy. They made baked beans, baked potatoes, chicken and couscous. You can see the recipes in the resource section of the Sense Scotland website. Shopping, putting away and food preparation are all activities which give meaning to people’s daily lives. They also help people to develop an understanding of what’s going to happen and when. Monitoring and recording activities and health It’s important to record and report activities so that the next staff team knows what’s been done and what people want to do next. Mealtimes are an ideal time to carry out a video analysis. Staff can set a camera up in the corner so that people forget that it is there, and this can help staff to spot issues and to analyse them. Video analysis also works well during activities. In both cases you can look at who’s communicating with whom, and what they’re communicating. You may also pick up on other issues and symptoms of possible problems. Once staff have analysed what people are doing they can agree consistent actions in response. Effective monitoring and recording of people’s activities and of their health gives us confidence in the decisions we make. It also shows GPs that they can be confident that we know what we’re talking about. When monitoring someone’s health you need to carry out general checks, and specific checks on issues that affect that person in particular. For someone with CRS you must look closely at their eyes, ears and heart. An annual check is a minimum. To make sure that your monitoring is comprehensive use a checklist – My Health Record works well. And keep the health report up to date. This comment made lots of people nod in agreement – perhaps not everyone updates their records regularly? The record needs to show what happened, and what staff are supposed to do about it. Sharing information When you need to consult health professionals tell them what you have observed, using all the resources you have. Staff are the most valuable source of anecdotal experience for other health professionals. Share with them your videos, communication passports, individual healthcare records and so on. They can be an invaluable way to demonstrate the everyday life of someone in your service. Staff observations can really help professionals to make a decision - and it is important for staff not to jump to their own conclusions. For example we heard the story of a woman who was videoed having a seizure. Staff were sure she had epilepsy. They took the video to a specialist who took one look and knew the seizures were caused by something else. Top tips for being taken seriously by health professionals 1.Be informed and have to hand: essential emergency information, capacity information, family health issues previous medical history and diagnoses reports and an overview of current health interventions including vision and hearing list of past and current medications. 2. Share evidence gathered from a range of monitoring tools. Video can provide good evidence. 3. Remember that you are giving the witness account – contribute information about all healthy living activities. 4. Refer health professionals to the DBI CRS network if they want to explore their concerns with other health professionals. Enjoy good practice By working together to create healthy lives we can all enjoy good practice. The key to enjoying it is to: get on the same wavelength learn to understand each other’s messages appreciate the human beings we all are value our shared time together. Conclusion – the key issues The key areas where we can help people to live healthy lives are: communication – people with CRS, researchers, practitioners and families all need to talk to each other relationships – between individuals, organisations and countries meaningful experiences. Bob Snow rounded off the session and the first day by commenting that the seminar had been a meaningful experience for him because it had ‘been like the old days – talking about rubella, communication etc. No one’s talked about personalisation or budgets. It’s been wonderful!’ The brain and relating to the world: CRS and behaviour Dr Jude Nicholas, specialist in clinical neuropsychology is currently attached to the Regional resource Centre for Deafblindness and the University Hospital in Bergen, Norway Summary 7 We all know that the stage of foetal development at which someone is affected by rubella determines the nature of the damage to their eyes. What many of us didn’t know was that the same applies to the brain. The rubella virus can damage the effective development of the neural paths in the: sensory systems motor systems cognitive and integrative systems. These systems develop from gestation into adulthood, starting with the sensory systems and finishing with the cognitive and integrative systems. Early damage due to rubella may not have observable effects straight away – we may only see the effects when the affected part of the brain is called into action as the person develops. While we can use standard checklists to assess a person with CRS’s behaviour, looking for possible neural impairment, we must always bear in mind the powerful effect of deafblindness itself. So while a person’s changing behaviour may be due to impairments in the brain, it may also be due to the way that deafblindness affects their ability to communicate and understanding of the world. So perhaps we should see abnormal behaviour as normal behaviour which we haven’t yet understood. There is much research to be done in this field and scientists and practitioners need to work closely together. In detail 7 Jude’s talk looked at brain development and the effects of CRS on the brain and on behaviour. The brain is the supreme organ of learning and an organ of adaptation. It has the ability to respond quickly and flexibly to change, based on information about the changing state of the world. We could say that it’s a ‘world processor’! Given the right stimulation, the brain is an organ that we can manipulate. Behavioural, social and psychological difficulties reported in people with CRS aggressive and impulsive behaviour continuous random purposeless movements ritualistic and self-injurious behaviours angry explosive outbursts/rage attacks low frustration tolerance emotional and social withdrawal frequent mood swings lack of energy attention problems/easily distracted memory impairment . There have been some small scale studies into these difficulties (they are listed at the end of this section) but though they observe the difficulties they don’t explain them. ’Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.’ Soren Kierkegaard Investigating the causes of behavioural difficulties We need to find causes for these behaviours. There are many factors behind the behaviours we see in people with CRS – there is never one cause alone. And causes may change – a behaviour may be caused by one thing one time, and something else another. It’s a challenge to understand challenging behaviour. Possible causes which we need to investigate include: Body/somatic conditions • consequences of sensory impairment and deprivation • endocrine dysfunctions (diabetes, thyroid conditions) • pain/discomfort or chronic pain. Person and environment • developmental aspects; consequences of early traumatic life events • communication aspects; lack of communication/inability to communicate or express their needs • psychological/psychiatric aspects; increasing feeling of incompetence or helplessness/stress and inadequate coping strategies/psychiatric disorders. Brain • epileptic seizures • pathological ageing (dementia/delirium: dementia is a sydrome rather than a disease – there are 80 different causes; delirium is an acute confused state due to medication or chronic pain) • virus-induced neurological condition: is there a chance that the virus affected the foetus neurologically? Brain development and virus infections The brain is not a homogenous organ like the liver. Symptoms depend on the part of the brain or central nervous system affected. There are many different viral infections and each tends to attack particular parts of the brain, causing particular neurological syndromes as a result. Though each sydrome has its own pattern of symptoms, we can see that some symptoms crop up regularly. So, for example, someone who has post polio syndrome (PPS) is likely to experience: • increased general fatigue • muscular deterioration; increased muscle weakness • pain in joints and muscles • respiratory problems • feelings of cold and cold intolerance • psychological difficulties related to deteriorations in physical functioning, increased fatigue and pains • cognitive problems. And someone with post viral fatigue syndrome caused by the Epstein-Barr virus may experience: • fatigue (sense of tiredness, lack of energy and exhaustion) not substantially alleviated by rest • stress-triggered fatigue and unwellness: rapid muscular and cognitive fatigue, fatigue/feeling ill and/or pain after strain, long recovery; need for rest • sleeping disorders: changes in pattern, unrefreshing sleep • pain: multi-joint pain without arthritis • neurological symptoms: dizziness, headaches, vision problems, intolerance to sensory stimulations • neuro-endocrine symptoms: changes in regulation of temperature, aggravated stress symptoms • immunological symptoms: sore throat, aching nodes, flue-like symptoms • disorder in autonomous control: rapid heartbeat, breathing difficulties, drop in blood pressure, frequent urination • cognitive difficulties (due to central fatigue). There is a link between infections and fatigue. How many people with CRS have fatigue? The brain does not remain the same at different stages of its development. So a lesion in a particular part of the brain will have a different effect depending on the stage of development of that part of the brain. This means that though two people may both be affected in the same part of the brain, the consequences can vary. So brain dysfunction due to congenital conditions must be viewed from a developmental perspective. We can see the importance of the stage of development in a child who falls and injures its frontal lobe and which seems normal in its early years – but when it reaches puberty and its frontal lobe comes into play it may experience problems. The cognitive and neuropsychological symptoms of CRS must be seen from a neurodevelopmental perspective. Myelin and information processing Myelin is a fatty substance that wraps around nerve fibres. It lets nerves transmit signals faster and more efficiently and enhances the speed of information processing. The sensory systems are the first part of the brain to be myelinised. Next come the motor systems and finally the cognitive/integrative systems, though in the first year of a baby’s life the myelinisation process is going on in all the systems. This process carries on into puberty and adulthood. The viral infection may affect those systems which myelinise slowly. This may eventually cause a neurodevelopmental disorder and can lead to some cognitive and integrative deficits. Impairments to the executive attentional network and self regulation Within the brain there are systems for attentional control. The neural connections in these systems may be damaged if the myelinisation process is impaired. If the executive attentional network is impaired we may see difficulties with: • concentration or sustained attention • working memory (the ability to retain new information and manipulate it at the same time) • executive functions or self regulation (purposeful, goal-oriented behaviour, or the abilities needed to control and regulate organised behaviour). Self regulation is the capacity to manage one’s own thoughts, feelings and actions in adaptive and flexible ways across a range of contexts. There are three dimensions to self regulation: cognitive, emotional and behavioural. We cannot look at any dimension on its own, and may see deficits in all three: • cognitive: attention and working memory problems; poor inhibition and impulse control; cognitive shift problems and perseveration • emotional: low frustration tolerance; emotional lability; frequent mood swings; poor emotional control • behavioural: increased aggression and impulsivity; ritualistic behaviour; angry explosive outbursts; emotional and social withdrawal. (If someone has cognitive shift problems this means that they are slow to move their attention from one thing to another – this can lead to perseveration, where they continue with a first task even after being told to move on to another.) A person with CRS’s social and behavioural functioning is mediated by cognitive, emotional and behavioural self-regulation. From theory to practice How can we best apply the knowledge of cognitive, emotional and behavioural self regulation to enhance the design of interventions for people with CRS? Case study: assessing someone with behavioural and cognitive difficulties A 52-year-old deafblind woman had shown typical manifestations of CRS as an infant. During the last few months staff had noted that she demonstrated increased aggression, impulsivity and self-injurious behaviour, angry explosive outbursts, low frustration tolerance, frequent mood swings and behavioural symptoms of confusion and memory loss. They wondered if these were signs of early dementia? However an MRI scan showed no atrophy or pathological changes. In order to manage the woman’s self regulation deficits the team needed to assess them. They used the Cognitive Regulation Checklist (CRC) (Nicholas et al, 2006) and the Emotional Regulation Checklist (ERC) (Shields and Cicchetti, 1997). However they did not rely purely on the results of these assessments but put them into the context of deafblindness. In homes where staff have little knowledge and communication with deafblind people there is a much higher apparent incidence of dementia. If you can communicate with the deafblind person, you can see their symptoms in a different way. The CRC involves making observations over a long period. It assesses self-regulatory functions that organise and manage other cognitive activities and overt behaviours. Can the person: • inhibit: control impulses; appropriately stop their own behaviour at the proper time? • shift: move freely from one situation to another as needed; be flexible? • initiate: begin a task or activity? • use working memory: hold information in mind? • plan/organise: carry out tasks in a systematic manner; develop appropriate tasks to carry out an associated action; anticipate future events? The woman’s CRC results showed that she had problems with inhibiting and shifting (behavioural deficits) and mild to moderate problems with initiating, working memory and planning and organising (cognitive deficits). The ERC assesses emotion regulation and lability/negativity. It looks at the way people feel and show emotion. It assesses: • appropriate affective displays • emotional awareness • inflexibility • mood lability • negative affect • fatigue (exacerbated by physical tasks previously achieved with ease). (Fatigue after tasks previously achieved without fatigue is a major symptom of dementia.) The woman’s ERC results showed that she had problems with both lability/negativity and emotion regulation. But what does it mean when a deafblind person with CRS displays these problems? • They may have a limited register for positive emotions. • They may have an insufficient or inadequate understanding of the emotional expressions of others. • They may misunderstand or have an alternative understanding of the emotional expressions of others. • They may have difficulties in expressing appropriate emotional expressions. • They may have difficulties with emotional control. We cannot simply rely on test results when assessing deafblind people – we need to understand the impact of deafblindness. As a result of the assessment the team decided to focus on positive emotions and to magnify their strength; they also developed a better understanding of the woman’s emotional expressions through communication and meaningful experiences. They worked on building communication, developing emotional regulation through joint activities and social interaction and creating meaningful relationships together. They showed staff in the home how to understand the woman’s behaviour in the context of her deafblindness, and a deafblind specialist visited and supported the woman. After the team’s intervention staff noted that the woman: • showed little self-injurious behaviour • showed few mood swings or angry explosive outbursts • appeared to be more relaxed and less tense • displayed more positive emotional expressions such as pleased, happy, delighted. Sources and resources There have been some small scale observational studies of CRS and behaviour: • American survey (O`Donnell, 1991): self stimulation, outbursts, self injurious behaviours, injuries to objects. • Canadian survey (Munroe, 1999): self stimulation, continuous random purposeless movements, aggressive behaviours, lethargy, disturbances in sleep regulation, tantrums and outbursts, changes in attention span. • Danish survey (Laustrup & Gosmer, 2003): attention problems, memory impairments, self stimulation, self injurious behaviours, aggressive behaviors, reduced tolerance to changes in routines, sleeping disorders, emotional lability, lowered frustration threshold, loss of energy. CRS and behaviour Chris Fuggle, Sense East and Ian Noble, Sense Scotland for the CRS Steering Group Summary 8 Challenging behaviour is not what defines someone – we all behave in challenging ways from time to time – we lose our tempers, or sulk, and we would hate to be labelled as ‘that person who is always shouting’ or ‘the grumpy one’. Our behaviour at those times is only an expression of the way we felt at that moment, and a way of communicating our feelings or needs there and then. People with CRS are no different – the only difference is that we label some of their behaviour as challenging because it carries risk and because we find it hard to cope with. There are many possible causes of challenging behaviour – a particular incident will be caused by many factors so we cannot explain it as resulting from one factor or trigger. Though it can be a long and complex task to unravel why someone currently uses challenging behaviours, it is well worth the effort as by doing this we can build effective support. In detail 8 Before starting, Chris emphasised that this session would focus on people with CRS and an intellectual disability. He then kicked off by reminding us that everyone behaves in ways that can be challenging – challenging behaviour is not some separate condition. Interestingly, though, if we show behaviours that others find challenging we don’t tend to call them ‘challenging behaviour’. Sense doesn’t see ‘challenging behaviour’ as a diagnosis or condition – and though a behaviour can be described a challenging, a person should not be. Why we need to take challenging behaviour seriously We need to take challenging behaviour seriously because it’s often associated with some form of risk such as: • compromised relationships, dignity or rights • physical injuries or infection • negative psychological impacts • property damage • increased vulnerability to abuse or neglect • reduced access to the community or learning opportunities. These risks could affect the service user, family members, staff, other service users, or members of the public. Ian explained that we tend to focus on the big stuff when we look at challenging behaviour. But it’s just as much about passivity and withdrawal, and behaviours that are like a dripping tap – the person who taps on the desk for hours, etc. Challenging behaviours can be subtle. We wonder at the end of the day why we’re so rattled, but they do really challenge us. Additionally, it can be really hard to bear witness to another’s distress. Why do some people show challenging behaviours? Chris explained that it is probably easier first to ask why people show any kind of behaviour: • to meet their own needs and wants • to avoid unwanted situations • to communicate their needs and wants to others • as part of social interaction • as a way to cope with particular or everyday stresses • because they have no other choice (think of a toddler pulling its mum’s skirt in the supermarket when she talks for too long) • because they enjoy the behaviour (think of eating too much chocolate). People show challenging behaviours for exactly the same reasons. So why do some people show challenging behaviours instead of the other standard behaviours that most of us show? • they are not aware of alternative behaviours • they have a history of needing to show these behaviours because the standard behaviours that we use did not have the required outcome for them (a person may have a variety of behaviours – they may not always use the most severe one) • the person has found a way of expressing • needs and wants (for things, activities or people) • choices (including being able to say ‘no’ – “no” is not an individual sign that many deafblind people learn easily) • feelings (including being able to let off steam – many deafblind people have fewer options for dealing with stress than many of us do – it may be more difficult to offload on a friend, go down the gym or get drunk) • inappropriate previous support • pain, illness or discomfort • physiological causes • mental health issues (psychiatric, psychological and learning). There is never one reason for someone’s behaviour. Looking for causes There’s more to it than triggers - building up emotional pressure Historically there has been a tendency to focus on finding specific triggers to specific behaviours. This can be useful but it is important to remember that our level of emotional arousal changes from moment to moment, based upon multiple factors – so we are rarely completely calm and then erupt with anger. As we go through each day we metaphorically shake our mood bottle, building up pressure – but we also have opportunities to let out the pressure. A deafblind person may not get these opportunities. A minor issue that we would usually cope with easily can become the last straw if we are already in a state of emotional arousal. Behaviours usually only occur when multiple triggers are in place. So, if we are told that J only self injures when he is hungry, we can pretty much agree that this is not likely to be accurate. Multiple causes and multiple behaviours There has been a tendency too to focus on specific behaviours having specific “functions” (or “intended purposes”). This can also be a useful approach but it is important to remember that one type of behaviour could be occurring at different times for completely different reasons. And similarly, that several different forms of behaviour could all have the same underlying cause. For example, if K drinks several glasses of wine every evening, we could ask why. Possible reasons might be to relax, because K is sad, because K is happy, because K can’t sleep, out of habit, to celebrate, or because K has an alcohol problem. Without knowing more we can’t tell – and K may have a different reason each night. Equally, one cause can lead to lots of different behaviours. Chris described a woman called K who had several varied ways of asking for a drink – she could sign ‘drink’, she could wander round the kitchen, she could shout and scream, she could self-injure, she could turn on the tap, and surprisingly she could also wet herself – because then staff would offer her a shower and she could then drink the shower water. Unpredictable outcomes It has also been common practice to look at the outcomes, or consequences of a person showing a particular behaviour and to try to use them to identify the likely cause of the behaviour. Again, this can be a useful approach but we need to remember that every behaviour is likely to have many different outcomes that change from day to day based on the situation. Just because a person shows a behaviour that has a particular outcome does not necessarily mean that they were showing the behaviour in order to get that outcome to occur. For example, if a person shouts and screams, what might happen? They may get more attention from staff. Someone may give them pain relief. They may be moved to a quieter area. They may be offered tea. They may be left alone. They may be offered an alternative activity. We can’t assume that the person can accurately predict the likely outcome of their behaviour. Make no assumptions It’s extremely patronising to assume that we know why someone uses a behaviour. We should never say something like ‘M only bangs her head to get attention’. It’s just as silly as saying that K only drinks wine in order to get a hangover or to get arrested. CRS and challenging behaviour: the behaviour is the sneeze, not the cold! Are there any causes of challenging behaviour that are particularly relevant to CRS? The causes given here add further to those already mentioned by Jude Nicholas in the previous session: lack of access to information (potentially a life-long issue) due to sensory impairment or mobility issues the environment or level of support offered may be too low or even too high (for example if someone gets constant one-to-one support and interaction this may actually be irritating them – a group home may offer more opportunities for stimulation and company; additionally we should remember that historically society has tended to put the people with the most complex needs in the most complex situations) communication difficulties learning disability or limited learning opportunities – some people have no learning disability and are effectively just waiting for someone to get in touch potential health issues such as heart, diabetes or thyroid problems epilepsy or changes in the brain changes in vision and hearing, ageing. The last point should remind us of the importance of keeping those health logs and reports – and of remembering that we all change as we age – we have teenage dramas, we go through mid-life crises ... When someone has had limited access to information and limited control over their life, this is likely to lead to low self-esteem, lack of confidence and a lack of motivation, all of which can in turn lead to them using challenging behaviour. What can we do? It is important to look for underlying causes for people’s behaviour as this will help us to support them better. To do this we need to: assess potential causes carefully and objectively without making assumptions recognise that the cause is valid even if the behaviour is challenging in nature recognise that human behaviour is not simple understand that a major potential cause for a person’s challenging behaviour is the way that we behave when we are with them! not take behaviour personally try to eliminate possible physiological causes try to minimise risks to everybody in the short term implement long-term strategies to support the person to develop alternative behaviours use a multidisciplinary approach (specialists, day-to-day staff, family, psychiatrists and psychologists, health professionals ...) provide support and encouragement to all, during what may be a long process. Medication and mental health Medication does often play an important part in helping any person to deal with mental health issues though it should never be used as an alternative to good practice, a good environment and appropriate staffing levels. There have been service users who have been in such a state of distress that staff have had no other option but to use some prescribed medication to help them calm enough to keep everyone safe and to get appropriate supportive interaction and conversation started again. This isn’t necessarily a CRS issue – one in four of us has a mental health problem at some time in our lives. It is essential to review drugs regularly as otherwise the person can end up taking a “cocktail”, with new ones being added every time the person has a crisis, or possibly just to counteract the side effects of the previous drugs. This is plainly a common problem, judging by the delegates’ clear agreement with this comment. The vital importance of staff There is no typical person with CRS – every single person is an individual with individual needs. Only those who spend regular quality periods of time with a service user are likely to develop a useful and comprehensive understanding of that person’s: background and history (here the knowledge and support of parents and siblings is vital) expressive and receptive communication needs and wants expectations and beliefs skills and abilities anxieties and frustrations (though we will never know it all). Chris explained his recent conversation with one of the participants William Green. There can be a ‘pygmalion’ effect when it comes to expectations – if we have no expectations of someone, we don’t give them the opportunity to develop. So it is important to think positive – there is no such thing as a “plateau” so we need to keep giving opportunities. Ian gave the example of Nelson Mandela who has a really positive attitude, and who has sometimes been criticised for always thinking the best of people. He takes this with good grace, saying that if he has good expectations of people quite often it leads to them behaving better. Equally, it is no use if we successfully teach someone to dress themselves more independently, but don’t tell other members of staff. In our absence the service user may not be given the chance to use and further develop their skills. Staff are crucial because they can: offer trusting relationships model alternative and more appropriate behaviours advocate for the person’s best interests and rights offer appropriate support and encouragement provide safety and security facilitate opportunities for community access and personal development act as observers – they can become highly skilled at picking up incredibly subtle communicative changes in behaviour that others would miss safeguard the person. What does Sense need in our staff? To be effective staff need to: be well trained – not just in challenging behaviour and crisis situation management but also in safeguarding, relationships, sexuality and communication be good communicators – it’s a two-way process be team workers have an empathic approach – trying to understand situations from the other person’s point of view be non-judgemental and avoid making assumptions recognise and promote individuality recognise their own skills and support needs recognise the need for continuous improvements and necessary change – techniques are constantly changing. Chris used an anecdote to illustrate the importance of staff being well trained: he visited a team which was all worked up because every time they wanted to do an activity, Mary signed ‘drink’. Chris asked what other signs Mary knew – and the answer was none, she had no choice about her signs! He finished his part of the session by commenting that the need for empathy was paramount – he had heard this mentioned throughout the two days of the seminar. Equally important though is the ability to say ‘I do not know.’ Mirror, mirror ... Ian Noble took over at this point to look at what we need to do as practitioners. He started out by saying that the main requirement is to think about what it means to be a human being – how are our needs met? We all share some fundamental needs, and if we remember that we have so much in common we’re half way there already. As well as the standard two weeks’ initial training, perhaps we should give new staff a mirror – just look in there and you’ll see the answers! Remember, you are only human. So if every now and then you can’t cope it probably just means that you’re normal. Remember that parents are only human too and that they have a lot on their plates. We need to empathise – not just with the people with CRS but also with our colleagues, parents and everyone else we work with. Choosing activities Though the range of activities described in an earlier session looks amazing (trampolining, climbing, etc), it’s not about money, it’s about connecting as human being. We have a lot more control over ideas for our service users than we think we do. We’re the ones who need to reach out – it’s down to us to say ‘do you fancy going climbing?’ or ‘I’ve found a great new coffee shop ...’. And we need to listen to our service users’ suggestions too. Case study: Lesley Heather McCrae, Sense Scotland Heather told us about Lesley with whom she has worked for ten years – and whom she has known for 15 years. Lesley has CRS and has just turned 40. Through her life, Lesley has lived in different environments and experienced a range of approaches. As a child, Lesley didn’t fit into either a school for deaf children or a school for blind children so she was sent to a special school, from which she was expelled for challenging behaviour. As a result she was placed in a long stay hospital where she received one hour of educational input a week. Lesley did get out of the hospital, and moved to Overbridge. Here she had access to a continuing education centre where she learnt to sign and some life skills. The staff’s approach was that students should sit still and learn, which wasn’t right for Lesley. The records show a very controlling approach here – for example, they ‘gave permission’ for people to watch television, and they were “sent to their rooms if they were naughty”. At Melville Street, where she moved to next, Lesley worked largely with the same staff, but one of them realised that they were using the wrong approach. She started using John O’Brien’s five points and together they went on a journey. Lesley was still living in the wrong environment for her, though, sharing with people who were messy whereas she is extremely tidy. She had been looking in estate agents’ windows for years, so ... ... now Lesley has her own flat in Strathburgo, with her own front door, and is supported at last to live her own life. There has been a complete shift in the balance of power – Lesley is much more in control, and is happy and content. She is also much more expressive, with a great sense of humour which she shares with Heather. The staff team which works with Lesley has made a huge difference: they changed their attitudes to let Lesley be herself and show her personality they were willing to be led by Lesley – for example one staff member went on a bus trip with Lesley to a distant swimming pool, and when they got there Lesley refused to get off the bus so they went all the way to Falkirk and ended up looking in the windows of a school – she laughed, and it was all her idea they promoted Lesley’s choices they learnt together they invested their own emotions they didn’t overprotect. There are still challenges: some staff still struggle to balance their duty of care with Lesley’s choices – for example they worry about her love of cake and her weight they always have to ensure that the balance of power is in Lesley’s favour – though this is less of an issue in Lesley’s case than in others’ they have to avoid making comparisons with other service users as this leads to loss of individuality – for example, it’s not fair to negatively compare someone who prefers to sit chatting with someone who likes to be out and about in the fresh air – both are valid choices there’s a tendency sometimes to pathologise Lesley’s behaviour rather than to see it as part of the way Lesley is. The staff have enabled Lesley to cope with life and to achieve what she wants to do – it’s a real success story. Case study: the behaviour of Mr C Clare Smith, Sense Summary 9 Mr C is a middle-aged man with CRS whose behaviour began to change when he reached his early 30s and he started to self injure seriously. Staff called in Sense West’s specialist team to try to find out why Mr C’s behaviour had changed. They carried out extensive observations and investigations, and established that there were several causes of Mr C’s behaviour, including his inability to express his needs and to respond to demands. They suspected that perhaps Mr C was learning that if he head banged, staff would respond by attending to his needs, so they looked for a better way for Mr C to express the fact that he wanted something. They fitted a buzzer in Mr C’s room which he could operate any time he needed staff support – and when staff consistently responded immediately to the buzzer, Mr C’s use of head banging dramatically declined. In detail Mr C was 44 when he was referred to the behaviour support team in Birmingham. He had a great sense of humour – he was always laughing and was very affectionate. He had lived with his parents until the age of 25, and then moved into Sense accommodation. When he was 32 staff began to observe incidents of self injury and physical aggression towards others, and these were becoming more frequent and intense. This is what led to his referral. The team focussed on Mr C’s self-injurious behaviour, which mostly took the form of head banging. It went in cycles and didn’t happen every day – but on average staff observed it four times a day. Incidents would last from a few moments to several hours and could lead to significant injury including stitches, bruises and swelling. It was also distressing for staff and his family. The team carried out a functional assessment so as to gather evidence and not make assumptions. They carried out: indirect observations – for example, looking at Mr C’s history notes and support plans interviews – why did staff think it was happening? direct observations. They reviewed the information with the staff team and together developed an intervention in order to find ways to help Mr C to gain the things he wanted and needed. When the team looked at the information they had gathered they noted that Mr C was diagnosed as deaf, although he heard some noises. He had gone blind due to retinal detachment. His testosterone levels had dropped considerably so he was receiving injections to increase them. A psychiatrist diagnosed a cyclical mood disorder, meaning that he had bouts of depression followed by bouts of elevated mood. He was also diagnosed with autism. Medications had led to manic behaviour and anti-psychotics had created abnormal liver function. When the team analysed Mr C’s communication, they found that for receptive communication he understood simple verbal communication, objects of reference (which were only used downstairs as staff feared he would harm himself or others if used upstairs), and sign. For expressive communication Mr C depended on objects of reference and simple signs – he had no verbal expression. They found that Mr C might bang his head if asked to do something (for example to shave, pull out the plug) and also if he couldn’t get his needs met (for example when he wanted a drink). In addition he might bang his head if he didn’t like something, such as wearing clothes, noise, demands, or heat. They noted the importance of environmental factors – upstairs in his room Mr C had no need for clothes, it was quieter, cooler and there were fewer demands. The team created a chart showing clusters of behaviours. There was a cluster at the end of September, when Mr C spent more and more time in retreat in his room. They could see no direct correlation to Mr C’s diabetes or injections. So they looked for situations which might lead to head banging. They wondered if Mr C might be learning the function of his behaviours – each time he banged his head staff would help, give him a drink, etc. So the team decided to increase the level of staff interaction with Mr C so that interaction wasn’t always about functional activities. They pre-empted the head banging by giving Mr C the drink and food he likes without being asked. And they taught Mr C a form of communication. In his room they fitted a switch that Mr C can use to alert staff to the fact that he wants something. Staff have to be really quick to respond as they are competing with the head banging behaviour. As a result of this intervention Mr C’s injurious behaviour has dramatically decreased, and he spends less time withdrawn in his room. The few remaining incidents are also far less severe. Question and answer session Dr Jude Nicholas Chris Fuggle Ian Noble Q How prevalent is advocacy in various countries for people with all degrees of CRS? Ian Noble: Provision is patchy – in some areas there are good local services, in others there is nothing. Advocacy is very important though – sometimes we’re too close to a situation so we need independent advisors. William Green (DbI rubella network): In Italy they call advocacy ‘administration of support’. They are training people there to carry out this role – 120 people have applied for the course, and the role is growing. Chris Fuggle: We have yet to see the full impact of the Mental Capacity Act which has created Independent Mental Capacity Advocates. It’s early days but this may be helpful to some people Q Does rubella cause nerve ending damage? Jude Nicholas: The brain is adaptive so there is always something we can do. Brain stress affects the function of a person – so when Mr C (see previous section) was alone he experienced less stress. We needed to help him to cope with stress by helping him to communicate and to achieve his needs. Giving Mr C the switch gave him the opportunity to control things and to plan. It’s not all a question of damage vs not damage. It’s a question of what do we understand and what intervention can we use? He’s optimistic – the brain is an organ of adaptation. Q Why is late manifestation of CRS symptoms so late? Chris Fuggle: No one is yet clear, though Nancy O’Donnell (DbI, US-based) is looking at it. We’re working with an ageing population and this may be why we’re seeing more problems around the thyroid, diabetes, etc. He wonders if perhaps the strain on the foetus of having to fight the infection wears the pancreas out. Jude Nicholas: Once you are old the virus is not active. But when you are older it can become clear what the effect of earlier damage was – for example the effect shows when you really need the pancreas, not before. The brain and the immune system almost compete with each other and at the end of the fight there will be damage. We may also become more vulnerable over time. Joff McGill: The virus attacks whatever cells are growing at the time of infection, so it’s better to see these symptoms as part of ongoing health concerns rather than specific late onset health issues. Q Heather McCrae described working with someone for over ten years. What effect does it have on someone when they lose a well-known member of staff to whom they are close? Ian Noble: Lesley has her own coping mechanisms. When someone leaves she picks someone else in the staff team. Heather picks a very diverse staff team so there is a real mixture of people. If they lose someone with a particular attribute Heather tries to replace that attribute when she recruits. Chris Fuggle: It’s hard for staff too so it’s good to make sure that it’s not always one person interacting with someone. Ian Noble: We need to remember that we’re part of someone’s story. Remembering this might help us to do things that can seem boring like recording and reporting – we’re helping them to tell their story. Where next for Sense and rubella? Every delegate was asked to fill in a feedback form so that we could gauge the issues which people felt were most important after two intensive days of discussion and learning. Some themes cropped up over and over – the prime one being the importance of communication between people with CRS, colleagues, families and professionals and between international practitioners and researchers. The majority of the delegates were practitioners, and easily their main interest was to ensure that they knew about the medical effects of CRS and their implications for people with CRS. They also noted the importance of making observations before intervening, and the usefulness of videos when making those observations. They commented on the importance of observing and reflecting before going to the doctors with a problem so as to have all the facts at hand. Like everyone else, the small group of delegates who had CRS commented on the importance of collaboration and sharing between professions. They also noted that people with CRS have human rights, and that we need to remember that not all people with CRS have additional learning disabilities or profound sensory difficulties. Delegates were asked what Sense should do next. The largest number felt that priority should be given to disseminating information to staff on the ground. Many felt that Sense should also disseminate information to healthcare professionals and build working relationships with them. We need to use clinical information when we work with these health professionals – working in a Sense house can be very repetitive and staff can sometimes lose sight of their professional role so we need to enable staff to use clinical information and to be professional. Some delegates suggested that staff should be trained as experts in deafblindness as a specialist discipline. Many people suggested ways of sharing information – for example by keeping our knowledge and websites up to date and by taking responsibility to remember to communicate our expertise in working with deafblind people to medical practitioners, so that staff are taken seriously and are seen as one important part of the individual’s health promotion team. There was a widespread feeling that more research is needed and that we need to get better at writing up what we do in the UK. Maybe we need to allocate time within people’s jobs for doing just this? We need to find out whether the symptoms and behaviours we see are a result of CRS or just part of normal life as people get older. And we need to give priority to helping people to live healthily, enabling them to enjoy rich and fulfilling lives. Bob Snow rounded off this summing up by saying that everyone clearly wants to work together and to share information. Sense is supposed to be an organisation for deafblind people so we’d better get moving – it took three and a half years to organise this seminar, so we need to get faster! ‘It’s not new interventions that change behaviour – it’s staff’s increased knowledge and understanding’ (overheard conversation between delegates) What work is going on in other organisations? In this session, delegates from outside Sense briefly summarised the work they were doing. DbI and the rubella network (William Green and Linda Long) DbI is rich in human resources – it’s a voluntary organisation established 40 years ago. It’s a networking organisation bringing together people in 80 countries and fertilising cross-border co-operation. There are 12 networks within DbI such as a sibling network, a communication network and the rubella network. Sense is an active member of DbI. Much of the work in DbI is done in people’s free time though there is funding available for research into rare illnesses so people shouldn’t be doing it at weekends. DbI would like the rubella network to identify areas of research which will help our health detectives on the ground. There are European and world conferences coming up – details are on the DbI website. It’s worth looking at the link to the Helen Keller institute. Nancy O’Donnell is there, who moderates the rubella network. There are in fact two networks – one linking people with CRS all over the world, and the other bringing professionals together. www.deafblindinternational.org/standard/network_rubella.html www.hknc.org/Rubella_network.html Sense Scotland (Paul Hart) Dr Joe Gibson did his PhD on communication using the outdoors. Now there’s new lottery-funded research. Dundee and Bergen Universities are looking at the impact of infant development in CRS. Scotland has the whole range of services and ancillary services – they do a lot of work outdoors, visual arts, sculpting, woodwork, etc. It’s easy to get caught up in fancy activities – but it’s the ordinary ones that make the difference. Anne Sullivan Centre, Dublin (Finola Loughney) This is a relatively small service set up in 1995 by parents. They have a built resource for a small group of deafblind adults living in three houses. They live more in the community now than they used to. They feel that they have lots of experience but not a huge amount of expertise. They are developing a service for children: in Ireland children will end up in a general service if nothing is provided. There’s not much by way of multi-disciplinary work yet but they are building up links with local contacts and have good working relationships. Canadian Deafblind and Rubella Organisation (Denise Drake and Diane Wilcock) They have no immediate plans to follow up their 1990s project though they would be open to partnerships and international collaborations. Their current project is to build a database to help monitor the health and wellbeing of the people they support. In 2011 they hope to develop a project on the lines of Sense Scotland’s Touchbase project. Viataal, Netherlands (Trees van Nunen and Anneka Schoenmaker) Since 2005 Trees and Anneka have been working on a long-term investigation into the effects of CRS in older people based on firm data rather than anecdotal evidence. They are looking at 70 residents with CRS who live with Viataal and with Bartimeus (an organisation for blind people). The research has two prongs: medical and psychological. The medical assessments are relatively straightforward and are rechecked every three years. They have only just begun the psychological assessments, which are more complex. They have created a file for each year of the study to enable them to compare data over a long period. The records note quantitative data and show degrees of increase in behaviours. They look for the effects of changes such as moving home or changing staff. There are many variables. Eventually they want to combine the medical and psychological data. The big difference between this work and that done in the Canadian study is that they are seeing the people in person – the data isn’t derived from checklists. They are keen to form a research group and are more than willing to share their inventory so that others can record data too. Sense (Joff McGill) Sense is undertaking some research with the people with CRS who we directly support. We have health monitoring in place this research is an opportunity to collate and analyse data centrally; it may also produce an opportunity to identify funding for a bigger piece of work with external partners at a later stage. (for more information contact Susannah.Barnett@sense.org.uk) Sense needs to continue to work with the National Congenital Rubella Surveillance Programme and inform them of any young people with CRS that we know about. Sense has recognised that our focus on person centred work has helped us deliver the aspirations of those we support, but more needs to be done in the areas of meaningful occupation, friendships and quality of life. The membership team supports a rubella network – a mailing list of those interested in rubella with bulletins sent out once or twice a year. Sense is engaged in international collaboration, working with Deafblind International and other partners. Sense fully supports the current MMR immunisation programme in the UK and works to raise awareness of the dangers of rubella and how to protect against it. Sense does not support single vaccines. We must not get complacent about rubella – CRS is a preventable disease, but only if vaccination rates remain high and stable.