Anatomy and Physiology of Cerebellar Hypoplasia
The cerebellum, the part of the brain that causes cerebellar hypoplasia, is one of the many parts of the brain shown here. The cerebellum integrates nerve impulses from parts of the ear and sensors in muscles to maintain balance and coordinate movement. The cerebellum is divided into two hemispheres with each hemisphere containing three lobes . The three lobes are anterior, posterior, and flocculonodular. Each lobe recieves different inputs from different areas such as the spinal cord (anterior), flocculondular (vestibules from the ear), and posterior (cerebrum).
Ultimately when the felines cerebellum fails to develop properly and is smaller than typical it can affect the felines balance and coordination due to its affect on each lobe and innervation from each lobe. It is to assume that the spinal cord affects their movement, while the vestibules of the ear and semicircular canals in the flocculondular portion affect their balance directly.
