Impact of World Cerebral Palsy Day on Public Interest in Brazil: Evidence from Internet Search Data

This study investigated the impact of the World Cerebral Palsy Day (WCPD) campaign on the public interest using Google Trends Analysis data in Brazil. Google Trends was used to collect Relative Search Volume (RSV) data for “cerebral palsy” from 2004 to 2011 (control years) and 2012 to 2022 (WCPD years). RSV during the 4 weeks around WCPD (period of interest) was compared with the rest of the year (control period) in each timeframe. Regional RSV, search queries, and main topics were also investigated. RSV increased by 62.22% from pre-campaign to campaign period. During the WCPD years, a 21.36% RSV increase occurred in campaign weeks, with an average difference of 12.16 (95% CI: 1.74, 22.58); notably in in the last five years in the southeast 9.47 (95% CI: 2.93, 16.01) and south 8.66 (95% CI: 1.66, 15.66) macro-regions. The campaign has fulfilled its role, but targeting more vulnerable areas could further amplify its impact.