Epidemiology of cerebral palsy

The term cerebral palsy refers to a range of clinical symptoms, with related service requirements, resulting from lesions or abnormalities in the brain arising early in life. It is not a diagnosis; aetiology and pathology are variable. This article discusses the definition and differential classification of cerebral palsy, describes trends in its frequency over time stratified by associated variables, and briefly reviews the most recent findings concerning its aetiology.