Effect of Robotic Rehabilitation on Hand Functions and Quality of Life in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Prospective
Sevda Adar1, Duygu Keskin, Ümit Dündar
1From the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, School of Medicine, Afyonkarahisar Health Sciences University, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey (SA, DK, ÜD, HT, HY, SE, NE, EB); and Department of Ataturk Vocational School of Health Services, Afyonkarahisar Health Sciences University, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey (AD).
Insights
Robotic hand rehabilitation significantly improved function and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy. However, it showed no superiority over conventional rehabilitation methods.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric rehabilitation
- Neurology
- Robotics in medicine
Background:
- Cerebral palsy (CP) affects motor function in children.
- Hand function impairment is common in CP, impacting daily activities.
- Innovative rehabilitation strategies are needed to improve outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of robotic hand rehabilitation in children with CP.
- To compare robotic rehabilitation with conventional methods for hand function and quality of life.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving children with CP aged 7-16 years.
- Two groups: robotic rehabilitation (n=9) and conventional rehabilitation (n=10).
- 30 sessions of hand rehabilitation, assessing outcomes like Fugl-Meyer Assessment and Box and Block Test.
Main Results:
- Robotic rehabilitation group showed significant improvements in most assessed parameters (P < 0.05).
- Conventional rehabilitation group also demonstrated significant improvements in several key areas (P < 0.05).
- No statistically significant difference was found between the two groups for any outcome measure (P > 0.05).
Conclusions:
- Robotic hand rehabilitation effectively enhances motor function, dexterity, and quality of life in pediatric CP.
- Current evidence does not support robotic rehabilitation being superior to conventional approaches.
- Further research may explore optimal integration of robotic therapy in CP management.
Objective:
This study aimed to examine the impact of robotic hand rehabilitation on hand function and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy.
Design:
Children with cerebral palsy aged 7-16 yrs were divided into robotic rehabilitation ( n = 9) or conventional rehabilitation ( n = 10) groups for hand rehabilitation of 30 sessions. The primary outcomes were the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity and Box and Block Test. The secondary outcomes were the Manual Ability Classification System, modified Ashworth scale, hand grasp and finger strengths, ABILHAND-Kids, Functional Independence Measure for Children, and PedsQL Quality of Life Inventory-CP Module.
Results:
In the robotic rehabilitation group, a significant improvement was found in all parameters after treatment ( P < 0.05), except for the Functional Independence Measure ( P = 0.081). In the conventional rehabilitation group, there was significant improvement after treatment in the modified Ashworth scale, Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity, hand grasp strength, Box and Block Test, ABILHAND-Kids, and PedsQL Quality of Life Inventory-CP Module ( P < 0.05). Before and after treatment, all outcome parameters in the groups were similar ( P > 0.05).
Conclusions:
Robotic hand rehabilitation is effective in improving motor function, manual dexterity, spasticity, and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy. However, it was not demonstrated to be superior to conventional rehabilitation.
