Spectrum of Gross Motor Function in Extremely Low Birth Weight Children With Cerebral Palsy at 18 Months of Age

Introduction - Cerebral Palsy (CP) being the leading cause of disability in children is a symptom complex, whichv has worldwide incidence of 2.1/1000 live births, and for India it is 3/1000 live births. In Ayurveda, the cerebral palsy can be correlated with various conditions due to Vata predominance. There is no satisfactory criterion in managing this condition is developed till date. The present study is planned with Abhaya Ghrita and procedure based therapy to provide possible improvement in gross motor function of children with cerebral palsy and thereby improving their quality of life. Material and Methods - A Trial was conducted at a tertiary health care setting to evaluate the clinical efficacy of Ayurvedic Intervention (Abhaya Ghrita and procedure based therapy Udvartana, Sarvanga Abhyanga, Nadi Sweda and Matra Basti). Diagnosed children of cerebral palsy, aged 1-12 years of either gender were selected. The scale gross motor function manual (GMFM) and Cerebral Palsy quality of life (CP-QOL) were used for assessment. Results - Total 20 patients were registered in the present study. 70% patients were below 8 years of age with clear male predominance comprised of 85% of the total sample size. As per the birth history of the patients 15% were preterm, home delivery was present in 20%. 45% and 10% were Low birth weight (LBW) and Very Low birth weight (VLBW) after birth respectively. History of delayed cry was present in 80% cases. 45% required Hospitalization and 65% were subjected to Resuscitation and need of incubator just after birth was present in 25% patients. Discussion - Gross Motor Function scale has shown significant improvement in motor activities like lying and rolling, sitting and total score with pandlt;0.001, on crawling and kneeling and standing with pandlt;0.01 and on walking and running with pandlt;0.02. The CP-QOL has also shown significant results on health and family and friends component. Conclusion - Thus, it may be concluded that the Ayurveda approach is effective in improving the gross motor function and quality of life of children with cerebral palsy.

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Prevalence of Speech Problems and the Use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Registry-Based Study in Norway

Perspectives on Augmentative and Alternative Communication ◽

10.1044/aac19.1.12 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 12-20 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Guro Andersen ◽

Tone R. Mjøen ◽

Torstein Vik

Keyword(s):

Cerebral Palsy ◽

Motor Function ◽

Gestational Age ◽

Augmentative And Alternative Communication ◽

Alternative Communication ◽

Gross Motor ◽

Gross Motor Function ◽

Children With Cerebral Palsy ◽

Communicative Abilities ◽

Normal Speech

Abstract This study describes the prevalence of speech problems and the use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) in children with cerebral palsy (CP) in Norway. Information on the communicative abilities of 564 children with CP born 1996–2003, recorded in the Norwegian CP Registry, was collected. A total of 270 children (48%) had normal speech, 90 (16%) had slightly indistinct speech, 52 (9%) had indistinct speech, 35 (6%) had very indistinct speech, 110 children (19%) had no speech, and 7 (1%) were unknown. Speech problems were most common in children with dyskinetic CP (92 %), in children with the most severe gross motor function impairments and among children being totally dependent on assistance in feeding or tube-fed children. A higher proportion of children born at term had speech problems when compared with children born before 32 weeks of gestational age 32 (p > 0.001). Among the 197 children with speech problems only, 106 (54%) used AAC in some form. Approximately 20% of children had no verbal speech, whereas ~15% had significant speech problems. Among children with either significant speech problems or no speech, only 54% used AAC in any form.

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