HipScreen App | Shriners Children's

Hip Surveillance at Your Fingertips

One in three children with cerebral palsy will develop hip problems and children with cerebral palsy are at increased risk for hip displacement and dislocation. If untreated, problems with walking , movement and sitting can occur.

Early detection through a hip surveillance program can preserve a child's function and prevent pain. HipScreen, a free app developed by physicians specializing in cerebral palsy, serves as an educational tool to help medical professionals, caregivers and parents understand and implement a hip surveillance program for children with cerebral palsy. The HipScreen App was developed by pediatric orthopaedic surgeons Vedant Kulkarni, M.D., and Jon Davids, M.D.

HipScreen Introduction by Vedant Kulkarni, M.D.

Hip surveillance can identify hip displacement in children with cerebral palsy earlier; allowing more effective and successful treatment.

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Vedant Kulkarni:

Welcome to hipscreen.org. Hip surveillance can identify hip displacement in children with cerebral palsy earlier, allowing for more effective and successful treatment. Unfortunately, substantial barriers to implementation of hip surveillance exist, including lack of education and challenges in the acquisition and interpretation of pelvis radiographs.

To overcome these barriers and to empower providers and caregivers, we created a free mobile app called HipScreen in 2016. HipScreen has easily navigable menus for understanding surveillance guidelines, protocols for proper positioning of radiographs, and a validated tool for measurement of x-rays directly from the device's screen. HipScreen was awarded the American Academy for Cerebral Palsy and Developmental Medicine's 2016 Fred P. Sage Award and is distributed as a public service by Shriners Children's at no cost, without tracking or data sharing, and free of advertisements or commercial content.

We hope that you use HipScreen and the training on this website to implement a hip surveillance program for children with cerebral palsy in your community. Thank you.

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Questions? Need Assistance? Contact us. Also, your feedback wil help with future development and research studies.

How hipscreen works

Makes Measuring an X-ray Easier

The most important X-ray measure to understand a child's risk of developing a progressive hip problem is the Migration Percentage, or the percent of the ball that is not covered by the hip socket. The Migration Percentage Ruler allows you to calculate this ratio more easily without having to measure distances.

Early Detection. Better Function.

Hip Surveillance is a regular schedule of clinical examinations and X-rays for early detection of hip problems. Earlier detection means more successful treatment and better function.

HipScreen can help you start a Hip Surveillance Program for a child with cerebral palsy.

Learn the Science of Hip Surveillance

This section of the app will help you learn about the science and evidence supporting a Hip Surveillance Program in children with cerebral palsy. The information will help you:

Assess a child with cerebral palsy with a focused hip exam
Obtain a properly positioned X-ray with a written standardized, downloadable protocol
Understand the important features of a hip surveillance X-ray

Get On Schedule!

Hip Surveillance is a schedule of X-rays and clinical examinations through childhood for early detection of hip disorders in children with cerebral palsy. Closer monitoring is needed for children with more severe cerebral palsy. This section of the app will help you classify cerebral palsy severity and provide a recommended screening schedule.

Makes Measuring an X-ray Easier

Early Detection. Better Function.

Hip Surveillance is a regular schedule of clinical examinations and X-rays for early detection of hip problems. Earlier detection means more successful treatment and better function.

HipScreen can help you start a Hip Surveillance Program for a child with cerebral palsy.

Learn the Science of Hip Surveillance

This section of the app will help you learn about the science and evidence supporting a Hip Surveillance Program in children with cerebral palsy. The information will help you:

Assess a child with cerebral palsy with a focused hip exam
Obtain a properly positioned X-ray with a written standardized, downloadable protocol
Understand the important features of a hip surveillance X-ray

Get On Schedule!

Makes Measuring an X-ray Easier

Why Do Hip Surveillance**?

Children with cerebral palsy are at a high risk for developing progressive hip dysplasia, or malformation of the hip joint. Though children who do not walk are at highest risk, even those with mild cerebral palsy can have silent hip dysplasia that can become painful if not treated.

1 in 3: Over 1/3 of children with cerebral palsy will develop hip displacement or dysplasia. Even children with mild cerebral palsy are at risk.
1 in 5: 20% of children with severe cerebral palsy will develop a hip displocation.

Evidence from numerous studies shows that regular hip X-ray examinations can detect problems before they cause symptoms, allowing for earlier / more effective treatment. Hip Surveillance is a regular schedule of clinical examinations and X-rays during childhood, proven to improve function in children with cerebral palsy.

50%: Half of children with a hip displocation will develop pain and problems with sitting, even if they do not walk.
ZERO: Sweden was able to completely eliminate hip dislocation in children with cerbral palsy using a Hip Surveillance Program.

View HipScreen Tutorials

HipScreen is easy to learn and easy to use. Follow our step-by-step tutorials and test your learning.

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HipScreen Publication

Read the research study that establishes HipScreen as a reliable and valid tool.

Read the study

** References:
1. Cooperman DR, et al. Hip dislocation in spastic cerebral palsy: long term consequences. Journal of Pediatric Orthopaedics 1987; 7:268-76.
2. Dobson F, et al. Hip surveillance in children with cerebral palsy: Impact on the surical management of spastic hip disease. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery [Br] 2002; 84-B:720-6.
3. Hagglund G, et al. Prevention of dislocation of the hip in children with cerebral palsy: 20-year results of a population-based prevention programme. Bone Joint Journal 2014; 96-B:1546-52.
4. Jung NH, et al. Does hip displacement influence health-related quality of life in children with cerebral palsy? Developmental Neurorehabilitation. 2014; 17(6):420-5.z

Terms of Use

The HipScreen App is being provided by the developers and Shriners Hospitals for Children (SHC) as a public service. The information was compiled from a variety of sources, including peer reviewed studies in other countries. This educational information is for use at the discretion and judgment of the individual user. All treatment decisions made based on this information are within the sole judgment and responsibility of the user exercising independent judgment in this area. The developers of the HipScreen App and SHC make no warranties regarding this material, and are not liable for its use or content. We do not warrant or represent that the medical information on the HipScreen App will be constantly available, or available at all; or that it is true, accurate, complete, current or non-misleading.

You must not rely on the information from the HipScreen App as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other professional healthcare provider. If you have any specific questions about any medical matter, you should consult your or your family member’s doctor or other professional healthcare provider. If you think you or your family member may be suffering from any medical condition, you should seek immediate medical attention. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information contained in this App or on any accompanying website.

The HipScreen App accesses the camera feature of your mobile phone. Use of this feature is under the sole discretion of you, the user, and you should comply with the personal health information and privacy laws of your institution, state, and country. The HipScreen App does not explicitly collect or store personal information on your device. The developers of the HipScreen App and SHC strongly encourage you to not photograph personally identifiable information on your device.

Any assistance you may receive using the HipScreen App’s interactive features does not constitute specific advice and accordingly should not be relied upon without further independent confirmation.

Images of the Group IV Hemiplegic Gait pattern and Radiological Positioning are copyright of Vedant Kulkarni, MD and Steve Dana. Images of the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels are reproduced with permission from H. Kerr Graham, MD.

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