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Goal Attainment Scaling to Evaluate Intervention on Individual Gains for Children Born Extremely Preterm
Laura Brown1, Yvonne R Burns, Pauline Watter
1Growth and Development Unit (Drs Brown, Burns, and Gray), Mater Mothers' Hospital, Raymond Terrace, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; Department of Physical Therapy (Dr Brown), Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick, New South Wales, Australia; School of Health and Rehabilitation (Drs Burns and Watter), University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia; Mater Research Institute (Dr Gray), University of Queensland, Raymond Terrace, South Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Insights
Group physical therapy significantly improved motor skills in very preterm children, with females showing greater gains than males. Goals were achieved beyond expectations, highlighting therapy
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Physical Therapy
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Motor Control
Background:
- Preterm and extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) children often experience motor impairments.
- Early intervention is crucial for optimizing developmental outcomes in this population.
- Group-based therapy offers a potentially effective and scalable intervention model.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of group-based physical therapy on individual progress in 4-year-old children with minimal to mild motor impairments using Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS).
- To examine the correlation between GAS scores and objective motor assessments (MABC-2, postural stability, limb strength).
- To investigate the influence of gender on therapeutic gains measured by GAS.
Main Methods:
- Twenty-four children (born <28 weeks' gestation and/or <1000g birth weight) with minimal/mild motor impairment participated.
- Intervention involved 6 weekly group physical therapy sessions and a home program.
- Outcomes were assessed using GAS, Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2), postural stability, and limb strength.
Main Results:
- The GAS T-score significantly improved post-intervention (mean = 58.2), exceeding the expected goal.
- A moderate correlation was found between GAS T-scores and MABC-2 percentile scores (r = 0.42, P = .04).
- Females demonstrated significantly greater improvements than males (P = .05).
Conclusions:
- Group physical therapy effectively facilitated goal achievement in motor coordination for preterm/ELBW children.
- GAS is a valuable tool for measuring individualized progress in this population.
- Male gender was associated with less favorable motor outcomes, suggesting a need for tailored approaches.
Purpose:
To investigate the effect of group-based physical therapy on individual gains among preterm and/or extremely low-birth-weight children with minimal or mild impairment at 4 years using Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS). To explore the relationship between GAS with motor and postural outcomes and effect of gender on GAS scores.
Methods:
Twenty-four 4-year-old children (born <28 weeks' gestation and/or birth weight <1000 g) with minimal or mild motor impairment completed 6 group-based weekly intervention sessions and a goal-based home program. Assessments included GAS, Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2), postural stability, and limb strength after intervention.
Results:
GAS group T score improved, exceeding expected goal of "0" score after intervention (mean = 58.2, standard deviation = 0.82). GAS mean T-score and MABC-2 percentile were moderately correlated (r = 0.42, P = .04). Females improved more than males (P = .05).
Conclusions:
Goals were achieved above expected level after intervention and were related to motor coordination. Male gender is a risk factor for less favorable outcomes.
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