Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 13, 2025
Enhancing the Development and Growth of Infant Cerebral Palsy Rats Using Selective Spinal Manipulations
Published on: February 2, 2024
Evidence-Based Infant Assessment for Cerebral Palsy: Diagnosis Timelines and Intervention Access in a Newborn
Ellen N Sutter1,2,3, Janet M Legare1,2, Melissa A Villegas1,2
1Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, USA.
Insights
Early evidence-based assessments improve cerebral palsy (CP) detection and intervention access. More assessments led to younger diagnosis ages, with most children referred to therapy before formal diagnosis.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Neurology
- Developmental Pediatrics
Background:
- Early detection of cerebral palsy (CP) is crucial for timely intervention.
- Evidence-based assessment pathways are key to identifying infants at risk.
- Guidelines published in 2017 emphasized early detection of CP.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between early evidence-based assessments and CP diagnosis timelines.
- To examine how these assessments impact access to rehabilitation interventions.
- To analyze trends in diagnosis and referral from 2010-2022.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective chart review of children with CP seen at a specific clinic (2010-2022).
- Analysis of the integration of CP-specific assessments post-2017 guidelines.
- Tracking age at first mention, diagnosis, and referral to therapy.
Main Results:
- Integration of CP-specific assessments increased after 2017.
- Age at CP high-risk mention decreased; age at diagnosis remained stable.
- Infants with multiple assessments received earlier diagnoses.
- 99% of children were referred to therapy pre-diagnosis.
- Infant referral age to outpatient therapy decreased over time.
Conclusions:
- Early evidence-based assessments are associated with earlier CP diagnosis.
- While diagnosis age is stable, earlier high-risk identification is occurring.
- High rates of pre-diagnosis therapy referral indicate progress, but implementation gaps remain.
- Further research needed on implementation feasibility for improved early diagnosis and intervention.
Abstract:
Evidence-based assessment pathways inform early detection of cerebral palsy and access to intervention. This study investigated the relationships between early evidence-based assessments, diagnosis timeline, and rehabilitation intervention access in a population of children with cerebral palsy who were seen between 2010 and 2022 at the University of Wisconsin Waisman Center Newborn Follow Up Clinic. Cerebral palsy-specific assessments were increasingly integrated after the publication of early detection guidelines by Novak et al. in 2017. Age at cerebral palsy first mention (high risk for cerebral palsy) decreased over time, although age at diagnosis remained similar. Infants who received multiple evidence-based assessments were diagnosed at a younger age. Ninety-nine percent of children were referred to rehabilitation therapies before diagnosis. Infant age at referral to outpatient therapies decreased over time. This study provides novel clinical data on diagnosis timelines and identifies remaining gaps related to implementation feasibility toward improved early diagnosis and intervention access.
More Related Videos
08:26Event-related Potentials During Target-response Tasks to Study Cognitive Processes of Upper Limb Use in Children with Unilateral Cerebral Palsy
Published on: January 11, 2016
19:15Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014