Movement analysis--an aid to early diagnosis of cerebral palsy

The purpose of this article is to review research related to the use of clinical analysis of movement as an aid to the early diagnosis of cerebral palsy. A historical perspective of clinical techniques used by physicians and physical therapists in the early diagnosis of cerebral palsy will be presented first, including recent research findings on clinical signs that were most predictive of this movement disorder. Predictive neuromotor behaviors common across several recent studies will be highlighted. Future trends in the use of movement analysis, including digitized kinematic analysis of term and preterm infants and fetal ultrasound techniques, will be discussed as well.