[Family function of children with Cerebral Palsy and it's relation to the severity and type of cerebral palsy]

Treatment and rehabilitation of children with cerebral palsy [CP] by a professional team take long time and impose expensive costs and human resources on the family and society. So the family undertakes a lot of difficulties and family function declines. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of family function in CP children and its relation to the type of CP and severity of disability. During this [descriptive- analytic] study, 43 mothers who had 0-8 year-old children with CP under rehabilitation services in SABA clinic, related to the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences [USWR], in Tehran, Iran, were selected as the case group. Informed consent was acquired from the mothers. Following, a data set of demographic information and Family Assessment Device were completed by them. The scores indicated the level of family function. The type of CP and the severity of disability were determined by a pediatrician and an occupational therapist respectively using GMFM, and their relation to family function were assessed. Seventy-seven mothers of normal children, serving as the control group, filled in the same questionnaires. The data was analyzed using SPSS statistical software. There were not significant differences in mean of family function scores between the two groups except in roles domain [P=0.132]. There were no significant differences in family function scores among the five types of CP [P=0.758]. It was found that there were no statistically significant differences in family function and the severity of disability rate using Pearson correlation [R= 0.099]. It seems the much time after diagnosis the more adaptation of parents in different domains of family function. In general, according to the results of this study, improvement of family function of children with CP is highly recommended, so we can improve the rehabilitation process and achieve better outcome in these children

effect of adding homeopathic treatment to rehabilitation on speech and social development of children with cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy [CP] is a static encephalopathy. In addition to motor developmental delay, most patients have speech and social developmental delay. Recently, complementary medicine like homeopathy has been used in the treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders. This study has been conducted to determine the effect of adding homeopathic treatment to rehabilitation on speech and social development of children with spastic cerebral palsy. This study was a double blind clinical trial. Twenty-four subjects were recruited from a clinic in Tehran during 2004. In this study, minimization technique was used and subjects were divided into case and control groups. The routine rehabilitation techniques were performed for 4 months in both groups. The control group received placebo and the case group homeopathy drugs. The subjects were 1-5 years old with spastic cerebral palsy, speech and social developmental delay. Level of speech and social development were assessed by Denver Developmental Screening Test II [DDST II] in the two beginning of the study and 4 months later. The average age, in the case and the control group was 28 and 28.4 months respectively. The level of speech and social development in the case group in comparison with the control group had no statistically significant difference [PV=0.17 and PV=1 respectively]. Adding homeopathy to rehabilitation had no significant effect on the level of speech and social development of CP children. Regarding the proved effects of homeopathy mentioned in different articles on the developmental status of children with CP, it is not possible to reject the effects of homeopathy on speech and social development of children with CP

Swedish massage and abnormal reflexes of chidren with spastic cerbral palsy

Massage therapy is one of the most widely used complementary and alternative medicine therapies for children. This study was conducted to determine the effect of wedish massage on abnormal reflexes in children with spastic cerebral palsy [CP]. This study was a single blind clinical trial conducted on forty children with spastic CP who were recruited from clinics of the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences. They were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. The routine occupational therapy [OT] techniques were performed during a 3 month-period in both groups. The intervention group also received Swedish massage for 30 minutes before every OT session. Primary, spinal, brain stem, midbrain, cortical and automatic reflexes were evaluated at the beginning of the study and 3 months later. The data analysis was done by parametric and nonparametric tests. Finally, thirteen subjects in the intervention group and 14 subjects in the control group were remained and studied. The average ages in the intervention and control groups were 49.5 and 42.1 months respectively. There were no statistically significant differences in abnormal reflexes in the intervention group in comparison to the control [P>0.05]. Adding Swedish massage to traditional OT techniques had no significant effects on abnormal reflexes in children with spastic cerebral palsy. Evidently more research is required in order to completely reject the effects of Swedish massage on abnormal reflexes of children with CP