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Stretch-shortening cycle exercises can efficiently optimize gait-symmetry and balance capabilities in children with
Ragab K Elnaggar1,2, Bader A Alqahtani1, Saud F Alsubaie1
1Department of Physical Therapy and Health Rehabilitation, Collage of Applied Medical Sciences, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia.
Insights
Stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) exercises, combined with physical rehabilitation, significantly improved gait symmetry and balance in children with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP). These findings highlight SSC exercises as a promising intervention for pediatric UCP management.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric rehabilitation
- Movement science
- Neurology
Background:
- Children with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP) exhibit impaired gait symmetry and balance.
- Developing effective interventions is crucial for functional remediation in pediatric UCP.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) exercises on gait symmetry and balance in children with UCP.
- To evaluate the efficacy of SSC exercises as an adjunct to standard physical rehabilitation.
Main Methods:
- A randomized controlled trial involving 42 children with UCP (ages 8-12).
- Participants received either standard physical rehabilitation or SSC exercises plus standard rehabilitation over 8 weeks (16 sessions).
- Assessed spatial-temporal gait symmetry index (GSI) and balance capabilities (reactive balance, directional control, movement synchronization, sensory organization) pre- and post-intervention.
Main Results:
- The SSC group showed significant improvements in both spatial and temporal gait symmetry compared to the control group.
- All measured balance capabilities demonstrated remarkable improvements in the SSC group post-treatment.
- Statistical analysis indicated significant differences favoring the SSC intervention (P < 0.05).
Conclusions:
- SSC exercises, when added to standard physical rehabilitation, are effective in enhancing gait symmetry in children with UCP.
- The study provides evidence for the benefit of SSC exercises in improving balance capabilities in this population.
- SSC exercises represent a valuable therapeutic approach for pediatric UCP.
Background:
Children with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP) experience an asymmetrical gait pattern and poor balance capabilities. Effective interventions, therefore, are needed to facilitate remediation of these functional issues.
Objective:
This study was set out to investigate the emerging role of stretch-shortening cycle (SSC) exercises on gait-symmetry and balance in children with UCP.
Methods:
In this randomized controlled trial, 42 children with UCP (age; 8 -12 years) were enrolled and received either standard physical rehabilitation (control group; n = 21) or the SSC exercise program plus physical rehabilitation (SSC group; n = 21). Spatial- and temporal-gait symmetry index (GSI) and specific balance capabilities [reactive balance, directional control, movement synchronization, and sensory organization] were assessed before and after 16 sessions that were carried out twice/week over non-sequential days in an 8-week program.
Results:
Using the pre-treatment scores as covariates, the post-treatment spatial- (P = 0.006; ηp2= 0.17) and temporal- GSI (P < .001; ηp2= 0.46) scores reduced significantly in the SSC group as compared to the control group, suggesting favorable improvement of gait symmetry. Also, all measures of balance (P < 0.05; ηp2 ranged between 0.10 and 0.29) improved remarkably, post-treatment, in SSC group in comparison with the control group.
Conclusion:
The evidence from this study suggests that SSC exercises besides standard physical rehabilitation appear to be effective for improving gait symmetry and boosting balance capabilities in children with UCP.
