Wii Sport versus task-oriented training on gait in unilateral cerebral palsy: A randomized controlled trial

Background: Unilateral cerebral palsy is a complex and heterogeneous disorder leading to a variety of functional impairment and gait disorders. Objective: To compare the effect of Wii Sport Training and Task-oriented Training on gait in children with unilateral cerebral palsy. Participants and Methodology: Sixty unilateral cerebral palsy children were selected in this study after the assessment of eligibility. Their ages ranged from eight to twelve years. They were randomly assigned into three groups of equal numbers. The control group (G1) received only a guideline protocol, group (G2) received the same guideline protocol plus Wii Sport Training and group (G3) received the same guideline protocol plus Task-oriented Training (TOT) group. All groups received the treatment protocol three times / weak for four successive months. Assessment of gait by 3D motion analysis (3DMA) system pre- and post-treatment that continued four months was conducted for all groups. Results: Post-treatment, significant improvement in the percent of weight support, stride length, step length, and cadence, in control, Wii Sport Training and TOT groups in favour of TOT group, also significant decrease in the percent of swing phase in all groups in favour of TOT group (p < .05). Conclusions: Wii Sport Training and Task-oriented Training have a significant effect on gait in children with unilateral cerebral palsy in favour of Task-oriented Training group

Virtual Reality Enhances Gait in Cerebral Palsy: A Training Dose-Response Meta-Analysis

Virtual-reality-based training can influence gait recovery in children with cerebral palsy. A consensus concerning its influence on spatiotemporal gait parameters and effective training dosage is still warranted. This study analyzes the influence of virtual-reality training (relevant training dosage) on gait recovery in children with cerebral palsy. A search was performed by two reviewers according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines on nine databases: PEDro, EBSCO, PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, EMBASE, ICI, Scopus, and PROQUEST. Of 989 records, 16 studies involving a total of 274 children with cerebral palsy met our inclusion criteria. Eighty-eight percent of the studies reported significant enhancements in gait performance after training with virtual reality. Meta-analyses revealed positive effects of virtual-reality training on gait velocity (Hedge's g = 0.68), stride length (0.30), cadence (0.66), and gross motor function measure (0.44). Subgroup analysis reported a training duration of 20–30 min per session, ≤4 times per week across ≥8 weeks to allow maximum enhancements in gait velocity. This study provides preliminary evidence for the beneficial influence of virtual-reality training in gait rehabilitation for children with cerebral palsy