Abstract
There is a lack of current research to support the efficacy of a combination of equine-assisted activities (EAA) and brain building activities to influence motor skill competencies in youth with neurodevelopmental disorders (ND). The primary objective of this study was to quantify changes in motor skill proficiency before and after 8 weeks of EAA and brain-building activities in youth with ND. A secondary objective was to quantify changes in motor skill proficiency before and after 1 year of EAA and brain-building activities in youth with ND. Twenty-five youth completed the same 32-week protocol that was separated into 4, 8-week blocks, in the following order: (1) control; (2) EAA-only; (3) washout; (4) GaitWay block (EAA and brain building activities). Before and after each block, motor skills were assessed using the Short Form of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-Version 2 (BOT-2). Seven youth continued with the GaitWay intervention for one additional year, and the BOT-2 Short Form was also administered following this intervention. A repeated-measures analysis-of-variance was performed to compare BOT-2 subtest and overall scores between interventions with a significance of 0.05. Manual dexterity was higher at Post-Washout [3.3 (2.4)] vs. Pre-Control [2.2 (2.1); p = 0.018] and Post-Control [2.6 (2.0); p = 0.024], and at Post-GaitWay vs. Pre-Control [3.2 (2.4) vs. 2.2 (2.1); p = 0.037]. Upper-limb coordination was higher at Post-GaitWay vs. Post-Control [6.0 (4.1) vs. 3.9 (3.8); p = 0.050]. When compared to Pre-Control [3.2 (3.0)], strength was higher at Post-EAA [4.9 (3.5); p = 0.028] and at Post-GaitWay [5.2 (2.9); p = 0.015]. Overall scores were higher at Post-GaitWay [39.1 (22.2)] when compared to Pre-Control [32.4 (21.6); p = 0.003] and Post-Control [32.5 (21.9); p = 0.009]. Additionally, motor skills were maintained for 1 year following the Post-GaitWay testing session among seven participants. This is the first known study to include and demonstrate the short-term and long-term effects of a combination of EAA and brain building activities with motor proficiency in youth with ND.Clinical Trial Registration: Motor Skill Proficiency After Equine-Assisted Activities and Brain-building Tasks; www.ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT04158960.
Highlights
Neurodevelopmental disorders (ND) are conditions characterized by developmental deficits and impairments in language and speech, cognition, behavior, and motor skills [1]
A secondary purpose was to quantify changes in motor skill proficiency before and after 1 year of equine-assisted activities (EAA) and brain-building activities with a subset of youth with ND who participated in the primary analyses
When compared to Pre-Control, strength was higher at PostEAA and at Post-GaitWay
Summary
Neurodevelopmental disorders (ND) are conditions characterized by developmental deficits and impairments in language and speech, cognition, behavior, and motor skills [1]. Associated with the dysfunction of the brain and central nervous system, children and adolescents (youth) with ND typically exhibit impairments related to personal, social, and academic performance and functioning [2]. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM5), examples of ND include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual developmental disorder (IDD), global developmental delays, disorders associated with communication and speech, learning disorders (LD), and mood disorders [2]. In the United States, ∼1 in 6 children have some developmental disability (i.e., LD, ADHD, ASD, other developmental delays) [3]. For youth referred to mental health services, prevalence rates of ND can be as high as 55.5%, with the majority of diagnoses occurring with boys [4]
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