title: [Gestational age, birth weight, degree of motor impairment, and causes of brain damage in sixty-eight patients with cerebral palsy identified in a community (birth year 1985-1991)].
abstract: Gestational age, birth weight, degree of motor impairment, and causes of brain damage were analyzed in 68 patients with cerebral palsy born and identified in a community. This community is located in the suburban Tokyo with about 480,000 inhabitants. In the period of 1985-1991, it had 34,289 live births (annual birth rate 1.0%) and all the births were recorded at public health centers. Sixty-eight patients with cerebral palsy were identified with the incidence rate of 2.0/1,000 birth. Twenty out of 68 cases (29%) were born before 37 weeks of pregnancy and 27 out of 68 cases (40%) were born with birth weight less than 2,500 gm. Patients with full term gestational weeks had severe motor impairment compared to preterm cases. Brain damages occurring in the prenatal period played a major role as the cause of cerebral palsy in the full-term-born group, and brain damage occurring in perinatal period played a major role in the preterm-born group. We conclude that to lessen new cases of cerebral palsy, we need two strategies; prevention of brain damages in the prenatal period, and prevention of preterm births.
authors.affiliation: Division of Child Neurology, Tokyo Metropolitan Higashiyamato Medical Center for the Handicapped.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D001723:Birth Rate; D001724:Birth Weight; D001927:Brain Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000453:epidemiology; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D007752:Obstetric Labor, Premature / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D011247:Pregnancy