Gross motor patterns in children with cerebral palsy and spastic diplegia

• Published in: Pediatric neurology Vol. 6; no. 4; pp. 245 - 250
• Main Authors: Yokochi, Kenji, Hosoe, Akihiko, Shimabukuro, Satoshi, Kodama, Kazuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.07.1990
• Subjects: Cerebral Palsy - diagnosis; Cerebral Palsy - physiopathology; Child, Preschool; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Humans; Locomotion - physiology; Male; Motor Skills - physiology; Muscle Spasticity - diagnosis; Muscle Spasticity - physiopathology; Muscles - physiopathology; Neurologic Examination
• ISSN: 0887-8994; 1873-5150
• DOI: 10.1016/0887-8994(90)90115-H

Rolling, sitting, and crawling patterns were motoscopically analyzed in 72 children with cerebral palsy and spastic diplegia; the relation between these patterns and the severity of the locomotive disability was studied. In rolling, trunk rotation and elbow support were difficult for the most severely diplegic children. When sitting, most patients had a between-heel sitting pattern in which the thighs were adducted and the knees were flexed. When crawling, the reciprocal thigh movements were insufficient and accompanied by lateral bending of the trunk in many patients. In the more impaired patients, the thighs supported the weight in flexion and did not move reciprocally. Creeping on the elbows without reciprocal leg movements was demonstrated in the most severely affected children after 2 years of age.