Physical Therapy Interventions in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Cerebral palsy is a group of disorders affecting individuals already from birth. It enormously impacts an individual's physical and emotional life and can bring many challenges to the individual, caregivers, and families. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate interventions that could improve various symptoms in children with cerebral palsy. Our systematic review intends to assess the effect of different exercise and physical therapy interventions in children with cerebral palsy. We used three databases for our article search: PubMed, Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE), and PubMed Central (PMC). The combined number of papers found in all databases was 65,412. We then applied our inclusion and exclusion criteria, filters, key terms, and Medical Subheadings (MeSH). After applying our quality assessment tools, we included nine papers in our systematic review. The studies included in our review used various interventions to assess for improvement in symptoms in individuals with cerebral palsy. Interventions included stretching and resistance exercises, horse riding, biking, core stability exercises, slackline training, a home exercise program using an online tool, sit-to-stand exercise program, and functional training. Many studies have shown that interventions improved symptoms like balance, coordination, gait, and cardiovascular endurance in cerebral palsy. This review suggests that some of the included interventions have great potential to improve the symptoms of cerebral palsy and, therefore, can be a great addition to existing training and rehabilitation programs. Given that studies included a relatively small number of participants and were conducted over a short time, more research with a more significant number of participants over a longer time is necessary.

Pediatric Rehabilitation for Walking Difficulty and Calf Muscle Pain in a 13-Year-Old Male With Spastic Diplegic Cerebral Palsy and Clubfoot Deformity: A Case Report

“…However, there is a noticeable lack of emphasis on communitybased leisure activities such as sports or cycling. Instead, the focus tends to be on task-oriented activities such as activities of daily living and mobility/motor skills development [11,12].…”

‘I’m proud of my son with CP’: Cerebral palsy caregivers’ experiences, Gauteng province

“…Sensation, cognition, perception, musculoskeletal development, muscle tone, movement, posture, communication and behaviour may be impaired (Morgan & McGinley 2018 ). Other comorbidities include visual, speech and hearing impairments, orthopaedic deformities, general poor health, malnutrition because of feeding problems and epilepsy (Gonzalez et al 2023 ; Malla et al 2022 ). Due to the chronic nature of CP and its multiple comorbidities, CP has a significant impact on the quality of life (QOL) of the child and their caregiver (Fairfax et al 2019 ).…”