Open AccessClinical Phenotype of Cerebral Palsy Depends on the Cause: Is It Really Cerebral Palsy? A Retrospective Study
Author(s) -
Charlotte Metz,
Monika Jaster,
E. W. Walch,
Akosua Sarpong-Bengelsdorf,
Angela M. Kaindl,
Joanna Schneider
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of child neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.661
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1702-6075
pISSN - 0883-0738
DOI - 10.1177/08830738211059686
Subject(s) - cerebral palsy , medicine , pediatrics , retrospective cohort study , palsy , physical medicine and rehabilitation , pathology , alternative medicine
Cerebral palsy is the most common motor disability in childhood. Still, the precise definition in terms of causes and timing of the brain damage remains controversial. Several studies examine the clinical phenotype of cerebral palsy types. The aim of our study was to determine to what extent the clinical phenotype of cerebral palsy patients depends on the underlying cause. We retrospectively evaluated the clinical phenotype, abnormalities during pregnancy, and cerebral palsy cause of 384 patients, treated at Charité-Medicine University, between 2015 and 2017. The cause of cerebral palsy was identified in 79.9% of cases. Causes prior to the perinatal period were, compared to perinatal brain damage, associated significantly with different comorbidities. The term cerebral palsy does not describe a single disease but is an umbrella term covering many different diseases. Depending on the cause, a varying clinical phenotype can be found, which offers great potential in terms of individual treatment and preventing comorbidities.