Robotic Hand Therapy for Children With Cerebral Palsy

In the researchers' words

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…