Data & Statistics

Prevalence and Characteristics

• Cerebral palsy is the most common motor disability in childhood
• Population-based studies from around the world report prevalence estimates of CP ranging from 1.5 to more than 4 per 1,000 live births or children of a defined age range
• About 1 in 323 children has been identified with CP according to estimates from CDC's Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network

In 2008, the ADDM CP Network included areas of Alabama, Georgia, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Based on children who were 8 years old and living in these four communities in 2008, the ADDM CP data showed that:

• CP was more common among boys than among girls.
• CP was more common among Black children than White children. Hispanic and White children were about equally likely to have CP.
• Most (77.4%) of the children identified with CP had spastic CP.
• Over half (58.2%) of the children identified with CP could walk independently.
• Many of the children with CP also had at least one co-occurring condition—41% had co-occurring epilepsy and 6.9% had co-occurring ASD.

Sources: Center for Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/cp/data.html