Robotic Hand Therapy for Children With Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common physical disability in childhood. The term CP is defined as a group of persistent but non-progressive movement and posture disorders resulting from a defect or lesion of the immature brain. The overall prevalence of CP worldwide is 2.11 per 1000 live births.There is evidence that 80% of children with CP have upper extremity involvement. In general, the acquisition of effective arm and hand skills for use in daily life is a complex process that not only requires neuromusculoskeletal integrity, but also includes various aspects of the child's abilities. Thus, in addition to the positive symptoms that typically present patterns of spasticity, children and adolescents with CP often have a poor ability to reach, grasp, release, and manipulate objects. They also have difficulty using their upper extremities to perform self-care and other activities.Robot-assisted and computer-assisted methods may be valuable new strategies for improving the sensory-motor learning process in children with central motor impairment. These new technologies represent an attractive complement to existing physiotherapeutic and occupational therapy concepts.In patients with difficulty in individual finger and hand movements, the AMADEO device (Tyromotion, Austria) can be used for unilateral distal training of the upper extremity. With this device, patients with little or no voluntary control of the hand and fingers can receive more or less passive training, while those with better distal function of the upper extremity can strength train by following the device or even against the device to a certain extent.Implementation of robot-assisted therapy provides intense repetitive training, sensorimotor integration and cognitive engagement through targeted tasks; focuses primarily on functional motor performance. From previous studies, the use of robotic devices has been found to improve the kinematics, range of motion, muscle tone, postural control, and functionality of the upper and lower extremities in individuals with CP. Robotic hand therapy has started to take place in routine rehabilitation protocols today. Considering the scarcity of studies on robotic hand therapy in the pediatric group, larger-scale studies are needed. In this study, our aim is to investigate the effect of robotic hand therapy on hand functions and quality of life in children with CP.

Inclusion Criteria:grade 1-3 according to the manual ability classification systemcapable of taking multi-step commandsable to sit in a chairExclusion Criteria:Having persistent pain in the upper extremity or hand (VAS>40)with severe spasticity of the hand (MAS≥3) or contractureFracture or operation in the upper extremity in the past 6 monthsBotulinum toxin injection to the upper extremity in the last 6 monthsskin ulcersevere vision and hearing impairmentintense ataxiauncontrolled epilepsy