學院

醫學院

系所

職能治療學系

題名

Potential predictors of changes in gross motor function during various tasks for children with cerebral palsy: A follow-up study

作者

Chen, C-L., Chen, C-Y., Chen, H-C., Liu, W-Y., Shen, I-H.*, & Lin, K-C.

期刊名稱

Research in Developmental Disabilities

發表日期

2013

著作性質

原著

語文

英文

關鍵字

Cerebral palsy, predictor, muscle strength, isokinetic test, motor outcome, treatment outcome

摘要

 
Very few studies have investigated predictors of change in various gross motor outcomes in ambulatory children with cerebral palsy (CP). The aim of this study was to identify potential predictors for change in gross motor outcomes measured during various tasks in children with CP. A group of 45 children (age, 6-15 years) with CP and 7 potential predictors were identified, including age, gender, CP subtypes, gross motor function classification system (GMFCS) levels, abdominal muscle endurance, and muscles strength of knee extensor and knee flexor measured by isokinetic dynanometer. Motor outcome was assessed by means of the gross motor composite (GMC) of Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOTMP), including four gross motor subtests: running speed and agility (RSA), balance (BAL), bilateral coordination (BCO), and strength (STR). The outcomes were measured at baseline and 12-week later (follow-up). The regression analyses showed that knee extensor strength was a robust predictor of change in BAL, BCO, and GMC (adjusted R2 = 0.07—0.19, P < 0.05). Additionally, abdominal muscle strength was a negative predictor for the changes in the RSA (adjusted R2 = 0.08, P < 0.05). However, STR model revealed no significant predictors. These findings suggest that ambulatory children with greater knee muscle strength may benefit more from therapy than those with lower strength. The knee muscle strength can be used as a biomarker to predict the changes in the gross motor functions.