Hippotherapy and the Communicative Abilities of Children With Down Syndrome: A Preliminary Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 81-92
Author(s):  
Donna Jackson-Maldonado
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Sensory Integration ◽  
Language Production ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Traditional Language ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Communicative Abilities

Hippotherapy uses the horse’s movement to enhance motor coordination, sensory integration, communication, and emotional stability in people with different disabilities. There is a need for evidence that proves increased efficiency in language use. In this study, we analyze the effect of hippotherapy on the communicative abilities of children with Down syndrome. Nine children between 4 and 7 years of age participated in two types of therapies: traditional language therapy and hippotherapy. Results showed effects of hippotherapy on language production and utterance length. Comprehension was enhanced by all therapy techniques. This preliminary study based on systematic evidence illustrates the effects of hippotherapy on communicative abilities.

The Effects of Co-Treatment on Concept Development in Children With Down Syndrome

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 176-187
Author(s):  
Emily Lund ◽  
Amanda Young ◽  
Rosalyna Yarbrough
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Preschool Children ◽  
Basic Concept ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Language Therapy ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Speech Language Pathologist ◽  
Learning Patterns ◽  
Physical Educator ◽  
Preliminary Study

This preliminary study investigated the effects of co-treatment by an adapted physical educator and speech-language pathologist on basic concept vocabulary learning in preschool children with Down syndrome as compared with the effects of treatment by either professional alone. In a Repeated Acquisition Design/Adapted Alternating Treatment study, 10 preschool children with Down syndrome were taught five basic concept words each week in a co-treatment intervention, in adapted physical education alone, or in speech-language therapy alone across 9 weeks. Each week, participants participated in a pre- and posttest. Four children learned the most words in the co-treatment condition and the remaining six children did not learn different numbers of words across conditions. Individual characteristics of children in the study were evaluated to determine possible factors that differentiate learning patterns among children. This preliminary study provides evidence that co-treatment may be effective for vocabulary teaching for some children with Down syndrome, particularly those with relatively high nonverbal intelligence.

scholarly journals The Electrical Activity of the Orbicularis Oris Muscle in Children with Down Syndrome—A Preliminary Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (23) ◽  
pp. 5611
Author(s):  
Liliana Szyszka-Sommerfeld ◽  
Magdalena Sycińska-Dziarnowska ◽  
Krzysztof Woźniak ◽  
Monika Machoy ◽  
Sławomir Wilczyński ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Electrical Activity ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
Exclusion Criteria ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Electrical Potentials ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Orbicularis Oris Muscle ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Muscular Effort

The aim of this study was to assess the electrical activity of the superior (SOO) and inferior (IOO) orbicularis oris muscles in children with Down syndrome (DS) and in children without DS. After applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 30 subjects were eligible to participate in the later stages of the research—15 subjects with DS (mean age 10.1 ± 1.1) and 15 healthy controls (mean age 9.8 ± 1.0). The electrical potentials of the SOO and IOO muscles were recorded using a DAB-Bluetooth electromyography machine (Zebris Medical GmbH, Germany) during the following tasks: At clinical rest, saliva swallowing, lip protrusion, lip compression, and production of the syllable/pa/. The Mann–Whitney U test was conducted to compare the study results between the groups. An analysis of the electromyographical (EMG) recordings showed that the electrical activity of the orbicularis oris muscle in children with DS and lip incompetence was significantly higher compared to healthy children during saliva swallowing, lip compression, and when producing the syllable/pa/, and this may suggest greater muscular effort due to the need to seal the lips during these functional conditions.

Talking about self and other: Emergence of an internal state lexicon in young children with Down syndrome

1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 729-748 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARJORIE BEEGHLY ◽  
DANTE CICCHETTI
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Young Children ◽  
Language Production ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Internal State ◽  
Play Skills ◽  
Comparable Group ◽  
Self And Other ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Internal States

The ability to talk about the internal states (IS) of self and other is an age-typical development of early childhood that is thought to reflect young children's emergent self–other understanding. This study examined the emergence of an IS lexicon in a cross-sectional sample of young children with Down syndrome (DS) and a cognitively and demographically comparable group of normally developing (ND) children. Children's IS lexicons were derived from transcripts of their spontaneous utterances during two laboratory contexts: a mother–child emotions picture book task and semistructured play. Children with DS produced significantly fewer IS words and fewer IS word types than their MA-matched counterparts. Controlling for corpus size, children with DS also were less likely to attribute internal states to themselves and were more context bound in their use of IS language. In addition, children with DS also differed from ND children in the semantic content of their IS language, with proportionately higher rates of affective words and lower rates for words about volition, ability, and cognition. For both the DS and ND groups, individual differences in IS language production were significantly related to general expressive language skills. However, dissociations were observed for the relation between children's IS word production and nonverbal symbolic play skills in the two groups. These findings suggest some degree of disorganization at the interface among symbolic domains for children with DS. Because IS language is critical to the regulation of social interaction and an early index of self–other differentiation and understanding, children with DS may be at risk for later compromises in self-organization.

Preliminary study of the safety and efficacy of donepezil hydrochloride in children with Down syndrome: A clinical report series

2007 ◽  
Vol 143A (13) ◽  
pp. 1408-1413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gail A. Spiridigliozzi ◽  
James H. Heller ◽  
Blythe G. Crissman ◽  
Jennifer A. Sullivan-Saarela ◽  
Rebecca Eells ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Clinical Report ◽  
Safety And Efficacy ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
Donepezil Hydrochloride

scholarly journals Feeding difficulties in children with Down syndrome

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Manuela Leitão de Vasconcelo ◽  
Julyane Feitoza Coêlho ◽  
Camila Fonsêca Guedes Pereira Máximo ◽  
Isabelle Isabelle Cahino Delgado ◽  
Giorvan Ânderson dos Santos Alves
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Psychosocial Development ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Muscle Tone ◽  
Sensory System ◽  
Feeding Difficulties ◽  
Healthy Development ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Oral Motor ◽  
Stomatognathic System

Feeding is a complex act that requires integration between the central and peripheral nervous systems, gastrointestinal and cardiopulmonary process, velopharyngeal mechanism, craniofacial and musculoskeletal structures. To become a pleasurable act for the child, it will depend on the sensory experiences lived or learned in the first months of life and the interaction with the environment and its caregivers. therefore, exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months and supplementation until the baby’s two years is extremely important to the child can go through periods of dietary changes without trauma and stress. Any interference in this process can generate impairment in the introduction and development of feeding, creating feeding difficulty. This is defined as any problem that can negatively influence how parents and caregivers provide food for the child, and its probable consequences are changes in the overall development, oral motor and psychosocial development, depending on the severity of the case. The speech therapist can intervene through broad and integrative approaches, aiming a safer and more effective diet, through the stimulation of the oral motor sensory system, improving chewing and promoting greater coordination between the suction, breathing and swallowing functions. Children with Down Syndrome, for having a specific genetic condition, have some clinical characteristics such as tongue protrusion, swallowing disorders, decreased muscle tone, gastroesophageal reflux, food intolerance, intestinal malabsorption, ogival palate, impaired motor coordination and other factors that can cause a delay in the development of the stomatognathic system, facilitating the appearance of feeding difficulties. Knowing that nutrition is an important factor for the healthy development of the child, the aim of this study is to present the data available in the literature about feeding difficulties in children with Down Syndrome.

scholarly journals Evaluation of functional capabilities in children with Down Syndrome

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-342 ◽  
Author(s):  
Desirée F. Scapinelli ◽  
Érica Martinho Salvador Laraia ◽  
Albert Schiaveto de Souza
Keyword(s):  
Down Syndrome ◽  
Motor Development ◽  
Motor Coordination ◽  
Functional Performance ◽  
Self Care ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Motor Delay ◽  
Children With Down Syndrome ◽  
Development Control ◽  
Functional Capabilities

Abstract Introduction: Down Syndrome (DS) is a chromosomal abnormality characterized by mental retardation of varying degrees and is one of the most commonly found chromosomal aberrations, presenting motor delay such as muscular hypotonic, balance disorders, motor coordination and gait changes. Objective: To evaluate the functional capabilities in children with Down syndrome through the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Methods: 20 children of both sexes, 10 with normal motor development (Control group) and 10 with Down syndrome. The functional capabilities were evaluated by PEDI (part I: functional capabilities, part II and III: caregiver assistance and change in environment) through interviews with caregivers. Results: Significant differences were observed in Part I, regarding functional capabilities in self-care (p = 0.0007), mobility (p = 0.0007) and social function (p = 0.0002), and in Part II, regarding caregiver assistance, the domains of self-care and mobility had p <0.0001 and p = 0.001. In Part III, changes in environment were more frequent when related to Down group. Conclusion: The Down syndrome group has lower functional performance in both functional capabilities and caregiver assistance, when compared to control group. However, it is clear that this questionnaire provides subsidies to make an early stimulation treatment in order to perform daily skills with the least possible help from their caregivers.

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