Article

OBJECTIVE: To determine the clinical efficacy of an ankle robotic rehabilitation
protocol for patients with cerebral palsy. DESIGN: The clinic cohort was
identified from a retrospective chart review in a before-after intervention trial
design and compared with a previously published prospective research cohort.
SETTING: Rehabilitation hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Children (N=28; mean age,
8.2+/-3.62 y) with Gross Motor Function Classification System levels I, II, or
III who were referred for ankle stretching and strengthening used a robotic ankle
device in a clinic setting. Clinic results were compared with a previously
published cohort of participants (N=12; mean age, 7.8+/-2.91 y) seen in a
research laboratory-based intervention protocol. INTERVENTIONS: Patients in the
clinic cohort were seen 2 times per week for 75-minute sessions for a total of 6
weeks. The first 30 minutes of the session were spent using the robotic ankle
device for ankle stretching and strengthening, and the remaining 45 minutes were
spent on functional movement activities. There was no control group. MAIN OUTCOME
MEASURES: We compared pre- and postintervention measures of plantarflexor and
dorsiflexor range of motion, strength, spasticity, mobility (Timed Up and Go
test, 6-minute walk test, 10-m walk test), balance (Pediatric Balance Scale),
Selective Control Assessment of the Lower Extremity (SCALE), and gross motor
function measure (GMFM). RESULTS: Significant improvements were found for the
clinic cohort in all main outcome measures except for the GMFM. These
improvements were equivalent to those reported in the research cohort, except for
larger SCALE test changes in the research cohort. CONCLUSIONS: These findings
suggest that translation of repetitive, goal-directed biofeedback training into
the clinic setting is both feasible and beneficial for patients with cerebral
palsy.
CI - Copyright (c) 2014 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS