Clinical changes as a result of dynamic seating in a young adult with cerebral palsy

Author(s):  
Michelle L. Lange
Author(s):  
Gitte Normann ◽  
Kirsten Arntz Boisen ◽  
Peter Uldall ◽  
Anne Brødsgaard

AbstractObjectivesYoung adults with cerebral palsy (CP) face potential challenges. The transition to young adulthood is characterized by significant changes in roles and responsibilities. Furthermore, young adults with chronic conditions face a transfer from pediatric care to adult healthcare. This study explores how living with CP affects young adults in general, and specifically which psychosocial, medical and healthcare needs are particularly important during this phase of life.MethodsA qualitative study with data from individual, semi-structured, in-depth interviews with six young adults with CP (ages 21–31 years) were transcribed verbatim and analyzed. The participants were selected to provide a maximum variation in age, gender, Gross Motor Function Classification System score and educational background. A descriptive thematic analysis was used to explore patterns and identify themes.ResultsThree themes were identified: “Being a Young Adult”, “Development in Physical Disability and New Challenges in Adulthood” and “Navigating the Healthcare System”. The three themes emerged from 15 sub-themes. Our findings emphasized that young adults with CP faced psychosocial challenges in social relationships, participation in education and work settings and striving towards independence. The transition to young adulthood led to a series of new challenges that the young adults were not prepared for. Medical challenges included managing CP-related physical and cognitive symptoms and navigating adult health care services, where new physicians with insufficient knowledge regarding CP were encountered.ConclusionThe young adults with CP were not prepared for the challenges and changes they faced during their transition into adulthood. They felt that they had been abandoned by the healthcare system and lacked a medical home. Better transitional care is urgently needed to prepare them for the challenges in young adulthood.


2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (01) ◽  
pp. 21-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael E. Hahn ◽  
Sheri L. Simkins ◽  
Jacob K. Gardner ◽  
Gaurav Kaushik

The study's aim was to determine the initial effects of a dynamic seating system as a therapeutic intervention in children with cerebral palsy. A two-factor, repeated-measures design was used. Twelve children with neuromuscular dysfunction (mean age 6.0, SD 2.7 years) were included in the study, randomly assigned to an experimental or a control group. At study initiation the experimental group received a wheelchair with dynamic seating components that allows limited range of motion in the hip and knee, and the control group received a static setting wheelchair. Participants were evaluated for range of motion, muscle spasticity (Modified Ashworth Scale), motor function (Gross Motor Function Measure), and level of disability (Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory) at study initiation, 3-months, and 6-months post intervention. Both groups improved in motor function over time, particularly in the categories of Sitting and Crawl/Kneel. Measures of disability improved in both groups for the categories of self-care, mobility, and social function. A larger, more homogeneous sample would likely show significant group differences in measures of muscle spasticity, gross motor function and disability.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 26-34
Author(s):  
D. S. Chegina ◽  
T. S. Ignatova ◽  
A. Yu. Efimtsev ◽  
A. S. Lepekhina ◽  
A. G. Levchuk ◽  
...  

Introduction. Rehabilitation of children with cerebral palsy is one of the most difficult tasks in modern neurology. One of the promising areas is the combination of physiotherapy with methods of stimulation of various parts of the nervous system, among which functional electrical stimulation of muscles and nerves (FES) is distinguished.Purpose of research. Assessment of changes in the functional connectivity of neural networks in the brain in patients with cerebral palsy before and after translingual neurostimulation using functional MRI at rest.Materials and methods. Analyzed the results of changes in the functional connectivity of neural networks in the brain in 25 patients with cerebral palsy before and after translingual neurostimulation. A clinical examination was carried out with an assessment of complaints, anamnesis and an assessment on neurological scales, followed by standard and functional MRI of the brain at rest.Summary. In children with spastic diplegia, functional changes in neural networks with a predominance of processes of strengthening intra- and interhemispheric connections (p<0,05) were revealed, which correlates with clinical changes in the form of a decrease in spasticity and an improvement in motor skills.


2019 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. 103450
Author(s):  
Silvia Pizzighello ◽  
Alda Pellegri ◽  
Alec Vestri ◽  
Marco Sala ◽  
Sara Piccoli ◽  
...  
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