Why is my baby exhibiting mirror movements of his hands?

Q: We have a 15 months old baby that we adopted. He was born with congenital hydrocephalus. He was shunted within the first week of life. Other than just a little bit of developmental delay he is progressing just fine. One thing that bothers me is that he has bilateral movement of his hands and fingers. His hands and fingers do the exact same thing almost all the time. It is the strangest thing. It is almost like a mirror image when you look at his hands and fingers. I have been trying to research this, but I am having problems coming up with a diagnosis.

A:You have got the correct terminology for this phenomenon - these movements are called 'Mirror movements' or 'bimanual synkinesis'. These have been considered as soft neurological signs. They are common in children till 4 years of age. They are also seen in hemiplegia or disorders of the cervical spine and abnormalities at the craniocervical junction. I think one should wait and watch.