Age-related trends in cardiometabolic disease among adults with cerebral palsy.

There was no comparison group for the cumulative incidence estimates, so the study cannot show that these rates are higher than rates in adults without cerebral palsy. Adults with cerebral palsy were identified from insurance diagnosis codes, and only socio-demographic data available in the insurance claim were used. The authors could not rule out time-varying confounding, unmeasured risk factors such as smoking, protective factors such as physical activity, or existing diseases such as cancer. Losses to follow-up could have biased the results if people who were sicker or more impaired were more likely to drop out. The sample came from one private payer, so adults with cerebral palsy who used social healthcare coverage, including people with more severe disability or lower household net worth, may be underrepresented. The authors noted that irregular clinical cardiovascular screening may contribute to the lower observed atherosclerosis rate.

The supplied text does not include a conflict-of-interest statement. The publication types report research support from the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Public Health Service.

Do not read this as evidence that physical therapy or exercise prevents cardiometabolic disease. The study only followed insurance diagnoses over time, did not test an intervention, and had no comparison group for cumulative incidence estimates.