The Effect of Individual Combination Therapy on Children with Motor Deficits from the Perspective of Comprehensive Rehabilitation

Abstract

Objective: The paper presents the results of a research survey focused on individual combination therapy in individuals with motor deficits during childhood. The research was carried out in 2020/2021. Two patients were selected based on predetermined relevant criteria and participated in the research survey. Intervention approaches within the research survey were focused on the development of the motor skills of the chosen patients suffering from cerebral palsy or dyspraxia. Furthermore, the patients’ social adaptability was supported together with their independence and self-sufficiency in coping with everyday tasks. Sample: Two patients (N = 2) participated in the research survey based on intended sampling (i.e., motor deficit, age 7–9 years, participation in rehabilitation interventions max. 4 times a month). Based on the predetermined criteria, the two patients were contacted, one of which (N = 1) was diagnosed with cerebral palsy diparesis (ICD-10; G80.1: spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, 8.8 years of age), and the other patient (N = 1) suffered from developmental dyspraxia (ICD-10; F82: a specific developmental disorder of motor functions, 7.4 years of age). The single-case research design method was applied to process the results. This type of qualitative research enabled us to study in detail a small number of participants, specifically in our research (N = 2), one individual patient who suffered from cerebral palsy and the other individual patient diagnosed with developmental dyspraxia. The choice of two individual patients would help us to obtain a better idea of the effect of the chosen combination therapy. A standardized modified FIM test (Functional Independence Measure) was used to present the results. Results: The presented results of the research survey using the single-case research design method point to the following findings. The chosen intervention method using combination therapy demonstrably improved the patients’ conditions within the monitored indicators. When the intervention was omitted and only the usual rehabilitation procedures were conducted, the patients’ conditions deteriorated and decreased to the initial values. Conclusion: Based on the presented results, combination therapy appears to be an effective approach for individuals with motor deficits at a younger school age. The combination of selected rehabilitation approaches using classical procedures as well as robotically assisted therapy is desirable in practice as it meets the requirements for rehabilitation in the 21st century. The survey results offer conclusions and recommendations for practice regarding the research topic.