The application of functional electrical stimulation for the cerebral palsy child

Abstract

The conventional treatments of surgery, physiotherapy, orthoses and drugs fall short of adequately managing the needs of many children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). The application of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) on the lower limb of children with CP has been considered by several authors from the 1970s onwards. More recent case studies have suggested that FES may be a useful therapy for improving upper limb function (Atwater et al., 1991; Carmick et al., 1993). Increases in wrist extensor strength and soft tissue changes may be responsible for the increased range of motion observed in these and other studies of children with CP. This will contribute to the functional improvements observed. Although the study using fNMR scanning to detect brain plasticity is not conclusive it certainly provides evidence that FES may induce brain plasticity. Further research into the possibility of FES inducing brain plasticity in children is an area of much interest. FES has been shown to be tolerated well by children with CP. There is a growing body of evidence supporting its widespread application as an adjunct therapy to the conventional treatments for CP.