While diagnosis of cerebral palsy typically occurs when children are 2 years of age or older, Nationwide Children’s has decreased the average age of diagnosis to 13 months, allowing for earlier therapy.

Little more than a month after a panel of international experts released new guidelines for early cerebral palsy diagnosis and intervention, Nationwide Children’s Hospital has become the first institution to demonstrate that they can be successfully applied in a clinical setting.

The Nationwide Children’s Early Developmental Clinic team reported on the experience recently in the journal Pediatric Neurology. Among other results, Nationwide Children’s has been able to make significantly earlier diagnoses of cerebral palsy in patients after guideline implementation.

“Research has shown us that if we can intervene early for children with cerebral palsy, when their brains have their greatest potential for recovery, we can have the greatest effect,” said Nathalie L. Maitre, MD, PhD, director of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Follow-up Programs at Nationwide Children’s and principal investigator in the Center for Perinatal Research. “This hospital is committed to helping children achieve the best possible outcomes, which is why everyone worked so hard to implement these guidelines.”

The guidelines were published in JAMA Pediatrics journal.