Evaluation of the Effect of Hippotherapy on Balance and Motor Function in Children with Cerebral Palsy

Öz

Cerebral palsy is a chronic neurological disease and the mainstay of treatment is physical therapy. Hippotherapy can be applied in addition to this classical treatment. Our study investigated the effect of hippotherapy on patients with cerebral palsy. Gross Motor Function Scale-88 (GMFS-88) and Berg Balance Scale were administered to the children before and after the treatment. After 12 weeks of therapy, a statistically significant increase was determined in the GMFS-88 and Berg Balance scale scores. This preliminary study shows that hippotherapy can be used in the treatment of pediatric cerebral palsy patients.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• cerebral palsy
• hippotherapy
• balance
• children

Hippoterapinin Serebral Palsili Çocuklarda Denge ve Motor Fonksiyona Etkisinin Değerlendirilmesi

Öz

Serebral palsi kronik nörolojik bir hastalık olup tedavinin temelini fizik tedavi oluşturmaktadır. Hippoterapi bu klasik tedavi yöntemine ek olarak uygulanabilmektedir. Çalışmamızda hippoterapinin serebral palsi hastalarına olan etkisi araştırıldı. Çocuklara tedavi öncesi ve sonrasında Kaba Motor Fonksiyon Ölçeği-88 (KMFÖ-88) ve Berg Denge Ölçeği uygulandı. On iki haftalık terapi sonrasında KMFÖ-88 ve Berg Denge ölçeği puanlarında istatiksel olarak anlamlı artış belirlendi. Bu ön çalışmamız hippoterapi uygulamasının pediatrik serebral palsi hastalarının tedavisinde kullanılabileceğini göstermektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• serebral palsi
• hippoterapi
• denge
• çocuk

Kaynakça

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