Minimising impairment: Protocol for a multicentre randomised controlled trial of upper limb orthoses for children with cerebral palsy.

BACKGROUND: Upper limb orthoses are frequently prescribed for children with cerebral palsy (CP) who have muscle overactivity predominantly due to spasticity, with little evidence of long-term effectiveness. Clinical consensus is that orthoses help to preserve range of movement: nevertheless, they can be complex to construct, expensive, uncomfortable and require commitment from parents and children to wear. This protocol paper describes a randomised controlled trial to evaluate whether long-term use of rigid wrist/hand orthoses (WHO) in children with CP, combined with usual multidisciplinary care, can prevent or reduce musculoskeletal impairments, including muscle stiffness/tone and loss of movement range, compared to usual multidisciplinary care alone. METHODS/DESIGN: This pragmatic, multicentre, assessor-blinded randomised controlled trial with economic analysis will recruit 194 children with CP, aged 5-15 years, who present with flexor muscle stiffness of the wrist and/or fingers/thumb (Modified Ashworth Scale score =1). Children, recruited from treatment centres in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia, will be randomised to groups (1:1 allocation) using concealed procedures. All children will receive care typically provided by their treating organisation. The treatment group will receive a custom-made serially adjustable rigid WHO, prescribed for 6 h nightly (or daily) to wear for 3 years. An application developed for mobile devices will monitor WHO wearing time and adverse events. The control group will not receive a WHO, and will cease wearing one if previously prescribed. Outcomes will be measured 6 monthly over a period of 3 years. The primary outcome is passive range of wrist extension, measured with fingers extended using a goniometer at 3 years. Secondary outcomes include muscle stiffness, spasticity, pain, grip strength and hand deformity. Activity, participation, quality of life, cost and cost-effectiveness will also be assessed. DISCUSSION: This study will provide evidence to inform clinicians, services, funding agencies and parents/carers of children with CP whether the provision of a rigid WHO to reduce upper limb impairment, in combination with usual multidisciplinary care, is worth the effort and costs. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ANZ Clinical Trials Registry: U1111-1164-0572

Effectiveness of physical therapy interventions for children with cerebral palsy: A systematic review

Background To assess the effectiveness of physical therapy (PT) interventions on functioning in children with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods A search was made in Medline, Cinahl, PEDro and the Cochrane library for the period 1990 to February 2007. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on PT interventions in children with diagnosed CP were included. Two reviewers independently assessed the methodological quality and extracted the data. The outcomes measured in the trials were classified using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Results Twenty-two trials were identified. Eight intervention categories were distinguished. Four trials were of high methodological quality. Moderate evidence of effectiveness was established for two intervention categories: effectiveness of upper extremity treatments on attained goals and active supination, and of prehensile hand treatment and neurodevelopmental therapy (NDT) or NDT twice a week on developmental status, and of constraint-induced therapy on amount and quality of hand use. Moderate evidence of ineffectiveness was found of strength training on walking speed and stride length. Conflicting evidence was found for strength training on gross motor function. For the other intervention categories the evidence was limited due to low methodological quality and the statistically insignificant results of the studies. Conclusion Due to limitations in methodological quality and variations in population, interventions and outcomes, mostly limited evidence on the effectiveness of most PT interventions is available through RCTs. Moderate evidence was found for some effectiveness of upper extremity training. Well-designed trials are needed especially for focused PT interventions.BioMed Central Open acces

Nematic opto-mechanical actuators for the fabrication of refreshable tactile systems

Nematic elastomers are promising materials for the fabrication of actuators due to their ability to reversibly contract and expand during phase transitions triggered by external stimuli. We present a refreshable tactile system based on the opto-mechanical properties of liquid-crystalline elastomers (LCE) composites, with the capability to represent Braille characters and graphic information. The actuators designed are based on the stress gradient generated in the elastomer under illumination to exert a force on movable components. Hardware implementation and communication software interface were developed too to provide end users with a complete solution. First tests prove not only the viability of the device, but also the potential applications of this type of actuators.Scopu

Evaluation of the effects of Botulinum toxin A injections when used to improve ease of care and comfort in children with cerebral palsy whom are non-ambulant: A double blind randomized controlled trial

Background: Children with cerebral palsy (CP) whom are non-ambulant are at risk of reduced quality of life and poor health status. Severe spasticity leads to discomfort and pain. Carer burden for families is significant. This study aims to determine whether intramuscular injections of botulinum toxin A (BoNT-A) combined with a regime of standard therapy has a positive effect on care and comfort for children with CP whom are non-ambulant (GMFCS IV/V), compared with standard therapy alone (cycle I), and whether repeated injections with the same regime of adjunctive therapy results in greater benefits compared with a single injecting episode (cycle II). The regime of therapy will include serial casting, splinting and/or provision of orthoses, as indicated, combined with four sessions of goal directed occupational therapy or physiotherapy