Effects of a multi-component virtual reality program on motor skills and functional postural control in children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy

Abstract

BackgroundPediatric neurorehabilitation has recently employed virtual reality (VR) technologies as a platform to design and implement novel modalities. AimsTo evaluate the feasibility of a multi-component VR-based program on motor skills and functional postural control for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (HCP). MethodsA single-case-experimental design was conducted on eight children with HCP (12.33 ± 4.71 years and GMFCS= II, I). The VR-based program consisted of 3 sessions per week for four weeks. Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, Functional Reach Test (FRT), Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS), Activities Scale for Kids (ASK), ABILHAND-Kids, and Box and Block Test (BBT) were used to evaluate functional changes. Outcomes and resultsStatistical analysis showed that improvements in functional postural control were significant on at least one balance measure for seven out of eight participants during the intervention phase. For all participants, a significant increase was observed in the BBT scores. Before-after intervention analysis revealed statistically significant improvements in PBS (z = −2.52, p ≤ 0.01), ABILHAND-Kids (z = −2.25, p ≤ 0.01), and ASK (z = −2.38, p ≤ 0.01). Conclusions and implicationsThis study provided early evidence of the effectiveness of the multi-component VR-based program in children with HCP. However, future studies with randomized controlled trial design are needed to evaluate the long-term effects and compare them with conventional rehabilitation practice.