Role and Effects of Hippotherapy in the Treatment of Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Abstract

Cerebral palsy is described as a group of permanent neuromotor-type disorders caused by non-progressive injuries in the developmental stages of the central nervous system, and which have serious repercussions on the quality of life of affected children due to the physical and psychological damage it entails for them. Today, it is the leading cause of physical disability in childhood. Since there is no cure for this disorder, treatment is based on the improvement of symptoms, which is not always achieved through conventional therapies. For this reason, the need arises to investigate other alternative therapies, such as hippotherapy, to determine the main effects of hippotherapy as a rehabilitation therapy in children with cerebral palsy. The review was performed in accordance with the criteria of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol and was registered under the number CRD42021233003. The databases used were PubMed, Dialnet and the web browser Google Scholar. After applying the inclusion criteria, we included 11 articles. As a conclusion, we found that hippotherapy provides benefits at physical, psychological, cognitive and social levels in children with cerebral palsy, and thus it should be considered as a complementary rehabilitation therapy to conventional treatments.

O papel da Equoterapia como ferramenta auxiliar de tratamento em distúrbios físicos e psiquiátricos: uma revisão narrativa

“…HTP seems to promote hypertrophy and increase muscle tone, essential factors for spasticity reduction. In their review, Menor Rodriguez et al have found that these effects are particularly valuable for some specific muscle groups: elbow flexors, plantar flexors, hip extensors, and hip abductors (Menor-Rodríguez et al, 2021). The perception of postural and balance improvement was unanimous in the systematics reviews regarding cerebral palsy included in this study.…”

“…Cerebral palsy (CP), also known as chronic non-progressive encephalopathy, represents the main source of physical disability in children (Murgia et al, 2018). Patients usually have limitations in their postural control, balance, gait, gross motor function, besides perceptive and sensorial disturbances, visual acuity reduction and epilepsy predisposition (Moraes et al, 2015 Research, Society and Development, v. 12, n. 1, e24012139650, 2023 (CC BY 4.0) | ISSN 2525-3409 | DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v12i1.39650 6 / Menor-Rodríguez et al, 2021). Spasticity is defined as an increase in muscle tone, aggravated by passive stretching.…”

Analysis of Traditional Chinese Medicine Symptoms in Children with Spastic Cerebral Palsy, a Protocol for Data Mining

“…Study by Jin SC 21 has revealed that mutations affecting neurite genes can elevate the risk of developing this condition. The currently therapeutic approaches for cerebral palsy encompass diverse modalities, such as physical therapy, 22 occupational therapy, 23 medications, 24 surgery, 25 hippotherapy 26 and yoga, 27 etc. TCM 13 has emerged as a significant player in the treatment of CP, particularly through the application of acupuncture and tuina techniques, as elucidated by recent studies.…”

Effectiveness of Mechanical Horse-Riding Simulator-Based Interventions in Patients with Cerebral Palsy—A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Furthermore, this movement, combined with the warmth of the horse, is hypothesized to decrease spastic muscle tone in children with CP. Some studies show that hippotherapy improves motor and balance disorders in these children, although it raises doubts about whether its efficacy is superior to conventional physiotherapy [ 32 ]. Despite the reported benefits of hippotherapy, there are some drawbacks that justify why this therapy is not widely used in clinical practice.…”