Motor therapy for children with cerebral palsy (Neurodevelopmental Therapy, Hippotheray , Aquatic Therapy) - Research Paper Example

There is enormous evidence about the benefits of motor therapy in the management of children with cerebral palsy (Batshaw, 2007). In this research article, the role of motor therapy in cerebral palsy will be discussed through review of suitable literature. Physical therapy plays a main role in managing cerebral palsy and the focus of physical therapy is movement, function and optimal use of the potential of the child. Physical therapies which have found to be effective in cerebral palsy are neurodevelopmental therapy, conductive education, strength training, postural control, constrained-induced movement therapy, hydrotherapy, passive stretching, orthotic devices and hippotherapy.

Through these treatments, promotion, maintenance and restoration of the psychological, physical and social-well being of the child is achieved. Which form of motor treatment is effective is difficult to ascertain owing to lack of high-quality research. The goal of management in individuals with cerebral palsy is not to achieve normalcy or not to cure but to increase the functionality of the patient, improve the capabilities of the patient and sustain health of the child in terms of cognitive development, locomotion, social interaction and independence.

Early intensive management yields best results. The most common treatment strategy is neurodevelopmental treatment or NBT like the Bobath method (Batshaw, 2007). In this treatment, specific handling techniques are employed to control muscle tone, abnormal patterns of movement, control of posture, perception, sensation and memory. However, there is not much evidence to ascertain the role of NBT in changing abnormal motoric responses, prevention of contractures and facilitation of functional motor activities.

In the Bobath method, after precise determination of the motor tasks of the child and after establishing the goals of NDT by the therapist, a structured program will be set for the child. The program consists of stretching of the legs, followed by techniques to decrease spasticity inorder to facilitate normal patterns of movements. Functional motor activities involved in the program are sitting, walking and standing up from sitting. The motor functions are practiced in a random order in several environments through augmented feedback that matches various stages of the learner (Bar-Haim et al, 2010).

The goals of NDT are to normalize the tone and improve the control of movement during various functional activities. Recently, another method of therapy, known as the constraint-induced therapy has been introduced which involves the more functional arm or hand to force use of the less functional upper extremity. (Batshaw et al, 2007). In the study by Antilla et al (2008), the researchers assessed the effectiveness of various forms of physical therapy interventions on various aspects of functioning in children with cerebral palsy.

The study was a systematic review which reviewed 22 trials of which four were high methodological quality studies. Based on these studies, the authors opined that there was moderate evidence to ascertain effectiveness in upper extremity training. Retarekar et al (2009) evaluated the benefits of aquatic aerobic exercise for cerebral palsy. the intervention was administered 3 times a week