Dr. Michael Shevell

Challenge Intellectual disability (ID) affects 800,000 Canadians and is defined by challenges in cognitive functions and daily living activities. Individuals with ID frequently struggle with other issues such as anxiety, autism, epilepsy, sleep problems, and difficulty living independently. But managing an ID diagnosis presents many challenges: individuals must discover which resources are best for them, [...]

Challenge The Canadian Cerebral Palsy Registry initially launched in 2003 as a platform to store data from people diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP). It has since expanded to include more than 2,250 participants with the disorder and has resulted in more than 35 academic publications. The next phase of the project is looking to expand [...]

Challenge There has historically been a lack of population-based information on how cerebral palsy presents in children, including possible risk factors, antecedent causes, functional severity,  and co-morbidities of the condition. To better understand the condition, the Canadian Cerebral Palsy Registry was created in Cycle I. Project Summary The Registry is a confidential, nation-wide collection of [...]

Challenge A lot of genomics data has been published on neurodevelopmental disabilities, but researchers face challenges in accessing this information. Data found in the literature is often scattered and difficult to synthesize, and simply aggregating data onto one platform isn’t sufficient. Project Summary This project aimed to examine the literature on the genomics of FASD, [...]

Challenge While cerebral palsy is the most common physical impairment in pediatrics, there is a lack of data on how the disease presents in children at the population level. Do regional differences exist across the frequency and spectrum of cerebral palsy within Canada? How does the Canadian experience  compare internationally ? What can a population [...]

Challenge The time around birth (known as the perinatal period) poses a high risk of stroke for children. One of the leading forms of cerebral palsy (CP) called hemiplegic CP, is often a result of these perinatal strokes. Despite this, perinatal stroke has been largely understudied, and limited treatment options or prevention strategies exist. Project [...]

Challenge While Canadian scientists are leaders in Cerebral Palsy research, effective communication and geography are barriers to creating connections that could lead to meaningful scientific discoveries. Additionally, knowledge of the root causes of CP is at an early stage. The lack of uptake of new evidence-based medical treatments highlights the need for better knowledge dissemination [...]

Challenge While the past several years have seen a growing awareness of the role of genetic risk factors in cerebral palsy, studies regarding the role gene variants play, their severity, and resulting co-morbidities of cerebral palsy have only just begun. Many new techniques in molecular genetics have emerged over the past few years, allowing for [...]