Brain Lesions in Children with Unilateral Spastic Cerebral Palsy

Introduction: Unilateral spastic cerebral palsy (US CP) is the second most common subtype of cerebral palsy. Aim: The aim of the study was to analyze neuroimaging findings in children with unilateral spastic cerebral palsy. Material and methods: The study was hospital based, which has included 106 patients with US CP (boys 72/girls 34, term 82/preterm 24). Neuroimaging findings were classified into 5 groups: Brain maldevelopment, predominant white matter injury, predominant gray matter injury, non specific findings and normal neuroimaging findings. Results: Predominant white matter lesions where the most frequent (48/106,45.28%; term 35/preterm 13), without statistically significant difference between term and preterm born children (x2=0.4357; p=0.490517). Predominant gray matter lesions had 32/106 children, 30.19%; (term 25/preterm 7, without statistically significant difference between term and preterm born children (x2=0.902; p=0.9862). Brain malformations had 10/106 children, 9.43%, and all of them were term born. Other finding had 2/106 children, 1.89%, both of them were term born. Normal neuroimaging findings were present in14/106 patients (13.21%). Conclusion: Neuroimaging may help to understand morphological background of motor impairment in children with US CP. Periventricular white matter lesions were the most frequent, then gray matter lesions.