Cerebral Palsy Research Group

This is a multidisciplinary group led by Professor Alastair MacLennan, who is Head of the Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in the School of Paediatrics and Reproductive Health at the University of Adelaide.

The group is based at the Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide and is a collaboration between The University of Adelaide, Discipline of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (Professor MacLennan, Dr Catherine Gibson, Professor Gustaaf Dekker) and other institutions, including the Women's and Children's Hospital Departments of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (Associate Professor Paul Goldwater), Histopathology (Associate Professor Yee Khong), Genetic Medicine (Professor Eric Haan), the South Australian Cerebral Palsy Register (Dr Gibson, Mrs Phillipa van Essen, Ms Heather Scott) and Paediatric Neurology (Dr Suzanna MacLennan). The SA Department of Health is also involved (Associate Professor Annabelle Chan and Mr Kevin Priest). Neonatologists and Obstetric Physicians at the Women's and Children's Hospital are also collaborators in this research group.

The group's chief scientist, Dr Catherine Gibson, won the 2006 SA Young Investigator of the Year Award for her work with this group. The group chairman Professor MacLennan has also held the position of chairman for the 1995 and 1999 International Consensus Statements on Cerebral Palsy.

Group Research Focus

Despite many advances in perinatal (prebirth) medicine and escalating caesarean section rates, the incidence of cerebral palsy has remained the same throughout the world, with approximately 2-2.5 in every 1,000 children born being diagnosed with cerebral palsy. It was previously assumed that many cases were due to birth asphyxia. This group has now shown many susceptibility risk factors in pregnancy that are associated with a cerebral palsy outcome. These include:

1. an abnormal fetal inflammatory response due to genetic mutations which makes the developing brain vulnerable to damage,
2. increased genetic mutations that increase the risk of fetal and neonatal thrombosis and lastly
3. increased exposure to viruses during pregnancy in cerebral palsy children.

These new risk factors potentiate the risk of cerebral palsy along with other previously known environmental risk factors for cerebral palsy, eg., intrauterine growth restriction, infection, prematurity and multiple pregnancy.

The South Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group has recently initiated a new research study, and formed the Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group, which is a collaboration of scientists and clinicians interested in cerebral palsy in all states of Australia .

Have you the cheek to help with cerebral palsy research?

The Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Group invites children with CP and their mothers to provide a cheek swab to investigate the possible genetic causes of cerebral palsy. The research group is seeking 2,500 Caucasian families nationally, and participation is easy and painless. For more information visit The Australian Cerebral Palsy Research Study

Key Contacts:

Professor Alastair Maclennan (Chairman)
Email

Dr Catherine Gibson
Email

Professor Gus Dekker
Email

Dr Paul Goldwater
Email

Mr Michael O'Callaghan (National Study Trial Coordinator)
Email