Cerebral palsy
Cerebral palsy (CP) describes a group of disorders of movement and posture resulting from problems that occurred early in life in the developing brain.
Children with cerebral palsy experience many different types of movement difficulties ranging from very mild to extremely severe, including muscle stiffness, weakness, involuntary or shaky movements, and reduced coordination or balance.
Some children experience problems with specific parts of the body (e.g., both legs or one side) while for others, their whole body is affected. When cerebral palsy is severe, children can have difficulty speaking, swallowing, seeing and hearing.
They may also have epilepsy, pain and other concerns. As a result, some children require help with daily activities such as eating, dressing and bathing.
Cerebral palsy is a lifelong condition, however, early diagnosis and interventions are important for improved outcomes. Vital research is ensuring children receive the right treatment at the right time for optimal functioning and participation of the child and family.
Who does it affect?
Who does it affect?
- Cerebral palsy is the most common childhood physical disability in Australia.
- In Australia, one in every 500 babies are diagnosed with cerebral palsy, with about 700 new cases each year.
- Cerebral palsy affects an estimated 17 million people worldwide.
Our cerebral palsy research
Our cerebral palsy research
Our cerebral palsy research encompasses a range of areas including:- Understanding risk factors and causes.
- Improving clinical management.
- Gait and orthopaedics – our gait laboratory is the best-known clinical laboratory in the world and leads research on treatments through long-term clinical trials and translates research findings quickly into practice.
- Addressing the health and social inequities of children, adolescents and young adults with cerebral palsy – our Centre of Research Excellence (CP-Achieve) is finding ways to better understand and address the health care and service needs of adolescents and young adults with cerebral palsy.
Impacts of our research
Impacts of our research
- The Victorian Cerebral Palsy Register, which forms the basis for much of our work, is recognised internationally and has supported 147 projects resulting in 150 publications.
- Our Gait Lab & Orthopaedics group, established in 1994, pioneered the use of botulinum toxin A to treat children with cerebral palsy. Children managed at the Gait Lab have a much higher level of physical functioning, confidence and mobility than those typically seen in the early ‘90s.
- Development of measurement tools used nationally and internationally including the Cerebral Palsy Quality of Life Questionnaire for Children, the Melbourne Assessment of Unilateral Upper Limb Function, the Mini Assisting Hand Assessment and the Drooling Impact Scale.
- Development of the ‘CP for GPs’ resource (> 10,000 views) to assist GPs to care for people with cerebral palsy. This resource is distributed internationally via the International Alliance of Academies of Childhood Disability Knowledge Hub.
- Our research is packaged so clinicians can use it: for example, the Dyskinesia Toolkit, resources to promote the early detection and diagnosis of cerebral palsy, and contributions to the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Care Pathways for Dystonia and Saliva Control.
- Our research has helped shift the focus of therapy towards supporting children and families to participate (attend and be involved) in their homes, school and community.
Our vision
Our vision
We aim to enable children whose lives are complicated by cerebral palsy, and their families, to meet the challenges of their development and provide opportunities to help ensure they reach their full potential across the life span. We do this by growing new knowledge and advancing clinical care in partnership with young people with cerebral palsy and their families.
Get the latest information
Grant to improve mental health outcomes for children with neurodevelopmental disorders
A Murdoch Children’s Research Institute-led project has secured federal funding to improve...
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New project to improve health and well-being of young people with cerebral palsy
A new research project has been created to better understand and address the health care and...
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Cerebral palsy guide helping GPs provide better care for patients
People living with cerebral palsy (CP), carers and researchers have joined forces to create an...
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Research to make early diagnosis, intervention possible for cerebral palsy
A test to diagnose cerebral palsy at birth, which could allow infants access to critical early...
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Trial of innovative app to screen for cerebral palsy
An app developed by the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Women's Hospital, and The...
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Understanding more about cerebral palsy and seizures
Written by Dr Monica Cooper | Honorary Research Fellow, Developmental Disability and...
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