Dystonia in individuals with spastic cerebral palsy and isolated periventricular leukomalacia.

The study was retrospective and single-center at a tertiary referral center, so the participants may not represent people with cerebral palsy and periventricular leukomalacia in the community. Only ambulatory participants at GMFCS levels I to III were included, so the findings do not apply to people with more limited gross motor function. Dystonia was identified from video review alone, without physical examination, and dystonia severity was not measured. Symptoms of dystonia could be masked or reduced by weakness, spasms, contractures, or treatments such as baclofen or botulinum neurotoxin A injections, so the reported prevalence is likely an underestimate. The design was cross-sectional, so the study cannot show how dystonia changes over time. MRI was used to identify isolated periventricular leukomalacia, but other subtle brain injuries could not be completely excluded, and interpretation may have varied across a long study period and different MRI techniques. Nine participants with unknown gestational age were excluded from the gestational age analysis.

The supplied metadata lists research support from NIH Extramural. The article text gives no conflicts-of-interest declaration.

Do not read the 59% prevalence as the true rate in all people with spastic cerebral palsy and isolated periventricular leukomalacia. The study included only people who could walk independently, assessed dystonia from video alone, and did not measure severity. The authors state symptoms could be masked by weakness, spasms, contractures, or treatments, so the reported prevalence is likely an underestimate.