Effects of Therapeutic Dosing through Enriched Environment on Gross Motor Function in Spastic Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy

Abstract

Background: Cerebral palsy differs in every child in terms of impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions, so intervention should be designed in a way which is specific to every child and is constantly adjusted according to the needs of the child. Level appropriate selection of dosage (frequency, type, time, intensity) of treatment plays a vital role in treatment efficacy. Objective: To investigate the effects of therapeutic dosing through age-appropriate enriched environment on gross motor function in spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. Methods:  In this RCT, 82 spastic cerebral palsy children were randomly allocated to two groups. Group A received level appropriate enriched environmental inputs consisting of motor and sensory enriched play environment with therapeutic dosing (20-25 minutes intermittently, 5 hours per day, 5 days a week for 24 weeks) along with Neurodevelopmental Technique. The goal was to promote participant’s self-generated movements, exploration of the environment and successful task completion. Group B received clinical based regular physical therapy consisting of NDT. Guidance was given to parents on how to carry out a home program. Data was collected at the end of 5 months on GMFM scale to check improvement in gross motor function. Results: The data was analyzed using Mann Whitney U test. There was statistically significant difference between the two groups. Group A showed improvement in gross motor function (p value<0.05) whereas improvement in group B was not as significant (p-value>0.05). Conclusion: This study concluded that optimal dosage of an intervention along with parent/caregiver education started at an early age resulted in significant functional improvements in spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy children. These improvements were observed not only in body functions but also in active involvement and participation of the child.