Article

Lack of muscle growth relative to bone growth may be responsible for
development of contractures in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Here, we used
ultrasonography to compare growth of the medial gastrocnemius muscle in children
with and without CP. METHOD: Twenty-six children with spastic CP (15 males, 11
females; mean age 35mo, range 8-65mo) and 101 typically developing children (47
males, 54 females; mean age 29mo, range 1-69mo) were included. Functional
abilities of children with CP equalled levels I to III in the Gross Motor
Function Classification System. Medial gastrocnemius muscle volume was
constructed from serial, transverse, two-dimensional ultrasonography images.
RESULTS: In typically developing children, medial gastrocnemius volume increased
linearly with age. Among children with CP, medial gastrocnemius volume increased
less with age and deviated significantly from typically developing children at 15
months of age (p<0.05). Bone length increased with age without significant
difference (p=0.49). INTERPRETATION: Muscle growth in children with CP initially
follows that of typically developing children, but decreases at 15 months of age.
This may be related to reduced physical activity and neural activation of the
muscle. Interventions stimulating muscle growth in young children with CP may be
important to prevent contractures.
CI - (c) 2015 Mac Keith Press.

Langue : ANGLAIS