Effects of a 12-Week Group Circuit-Based Kinetotherapy Program on Muscle Strength, Segmental Trophicity, and Postural...

Background: Children with Down syndrome (DS) commonly present hypotonia, ligamentous laxity, and impaired postural control, which delay gross motor milestones and limit functional independence. Group-based, music-supported circuit kinetotherapy has been proposed as a feasible and engaging strategy to address these deficits, but comparative evidence in pediatric samples remains limited. Patients and methods: A prospective, exploratory pre-post intervention study with a non-randomized baseline control group was conducted in 20 children with trisomy 21 (aged 4-12 years), allocated by feasibility of attendance (not randomized) to an experimental group (n = 10) that completed a 12-week, once-weekly, 60-min music-assisted dynamic circuit program (seven stations targeting coordination, proprioception, postural alignment, and functional reach) and a control group (n = 10) that received no structured intervention and was assessed at baseline only (no post-intervention follow-up data were collected for this group). Outcomes included segmental limb circumferences, manual muscle testing (F1-F5) of six muscle groups, and the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), assessed at baseline (T1) in both groups and after the intervention period (T2) in the experimental group only. Results: These within-group (pre-post) findings in the experimental group showed statistically significant increases in left arm circumference (contracted; p = 0.009, d = 0.25), left thigh circumference (p = 0.001, d = 0.16), right thigh circumference (p = 0.003, d = 0.17), iliopsoas manual muscle test scores (Wilcoxon p = 0.015; reported by Wilcoxon test only, as MMT is an ordinal scale), and total BBS score (from 41.4 ± 8.67 to 45.9 ± 7.85; t(9) = 6.40, p < 0.001, Wilcoxon p = 0.006, d = 0.54). Right arm circumference, triceps brachii, and elbow flexors showed positive but statistically non-significant trends (p = 0.081-0.346); pelvic fixation function and quadriceps femoris also did not reach significance, and the middle deltoid/supraspinatus grade showed a small, non-significant decrease after correction of a baseline data-entry error identified during peer review. No correction for multiple comparisons was applied, and post-intervention data were not available for the control group; these findings should therefore be interpreted as exploratory. Conclusions: A 12-week group circuit kinetotherapy program combined with musical stimulation was associated with measurable within-group gains in segmental limb circumference, hip-flexor strength, and functional postural balance in children with Down syndrome. Because post-intervention data were not available for the control group, these findings provide preliminary, exploratory evidence rather than confirmation of superiority over no intervention. Larger, randomized controlled trials with complete follow-up in both arms are warranted to confirm these findings.