To investigate changes in hand function associated with electrical stimulation for children with ... more To investigate changes in hand function associated with electrical stimulation for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy. An ABCA single-subject design, replicated in two children, was used in this study. Each baseline (phase A) lasted 4 weeks. Intervention consisted of electrical stimulation of wrist extensors (phase B) and of wrist extensors and flexors (phase C) for 15 minutes three times a week. Intervention phases also lasted 4 weeks. Active wrist extension range of movement and three timed manual tasks were tested two times a week every week. Data analysis included the Celeration Line and Two Standard Deviation Band methods in addition to visual analysis. Significant performance gains were observed for both children, especially in phase C, when both extensors and flexors were stimulated. After intervention withdrawal, significant performance decreases were observed on most analysed variables. The observed performance changes seem to be associated with the presence of intervention and suggest that electrical stimulation can be a useful adjunct to improve hand function of children with cerebral palsy.
OBJECTIVES: to perform a systematic literature review through a careful survey of scientific arti... more OBJECTIVES: to perform a systematic literature review through a careful survey of scientific articles investigating serial casting effects in children clinically diagnosed with spastic cerebral palsy. METHODS: systematic literature survey performed during the period of March to August 2004, in Medline, Lilacs and PEDro electronic databases published in English and Portuguese from 1980 to 2004. The evidence level of the articles studied was rated according to the Magee scale. RESULTS: the four articles included in this review met all the inclusion criteria and were rated poor according to the Magee scale (agreement index Kappa K = 1.0) due to the methodological limitations determined. CONCLUSIONS: the evidence used in this systematic review was insufficient to support the use of serial casting in children with cerebral palsy. Further research is required to fulfill the need of higher methodological standards to validate evidence based practice.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the profile of changes in the use of the upper extremity in three child... more OBJECTIVE: To investigate the profile of changes in the use of the upper extremity in three children with hemiplegia submitted to an adapted protocol of constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT). METHODS: A single-subject design (ABA) was replicated in three children aged 8 to 11 years old. Baseline phases (A1) and (A2) and the intervention phase (B) lasted 2 weeks each. During the intervention period, children wore a splint on the non-affected extremity for 10 hours a day and were submitted to 3 hours of therapy a day during 10 days. Training consisted of activities with the affected upper extremity, with gradually increasing complexity and verbal feedback. Hand function was classified according to the Manual Ability Classification System (MACS). Children were assessed four times every week with the Toddler Arm Use Test (TAUT) and three adapted tasks from the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function test (JTHF), and once a week with the Pediatric Motor Activity Log (PMAL) and self-care scales of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Celeration Line, Two-Standard Deviation Band and visual analysis methods were used for data analyses. RESULTS: Significant improvements in the amount and quality of upper extremity use (PMAL), TAUT quality of use for children 2 and 3, and participation for child 1, as well as decreased time to complete JTHF tasks for children 2 and 3 were observed. No changes were observed in the PEDI self-care scales. CONCLUSION: CIMT effects were associated with improvements in manual dexterity, amount and quality of use of the affected upper extremity in children with hemiplegia.
OBJECTIVE: to investigate the impact of a thumb abduction orthosis on functional skills of a chil... more OBJECTIVE: to investigate the impact of a thumb abduction orthosis on functional skills of a child with hemiparetic cerebral palsy and mild spasticity. METHODS: an AB single-subject design was used in this study. Baseline A consisted of data collected during a period without intervention (control conditions). The intervention phase B included the use of a thumb abduction orthosis in association with traditional occupational therapy. The baseline lasted six weeks and the intervention period eight weeks. Assessments were performed once a week throughout the study and included hand function tests and range of motion measures for active wrist extension and flexion and thumb abduction and opponency. The Celeration Line and Two-Standard Deviation Band methods, as well as Visual Analysis, were used for data analysis. RESULTS: the child demonstrated significant improvements in the range of active motions. A trend towards a reduction in the time to perform manual tasks was observed, but this was only statistically significant in the case of the task of stacking blocks. CONCLUSION: the results suggest that thumb abduction orthosis may be a useful adjunct treatment to improve the range of active hand motions in children with hemiparetic cerebral palsy.
A variety of definitions of intelligence have been offered that are not exclusively human-centric... more A variety of definitions of intelligence have been offered that are not exclusively human-centric. One, in particular, is taken as a starting point: end-directed behavior marked by the making of meaningful distinctions made possible by perception–action cycles. Specific examples of end-directed behavior are examined for evidence of three aspects of the kind of agency embodied in perception–action cycles, namely, prospectivity, retrospectivity, and flexibility. The chosen examples of behavior are nicely layered but otherwise unremarkable. Nonetheless, they all have an unexpected twist that challenges the kinds of explanations of intelligence qua agency that are rooted in neurobiology.
CONTEXTUALIZAÇÃO: A lombalgia é um conjunto de manifestações dolorosas que pode acarretar limitaç... more CONTEXTUALIZAÇÃO: A lombalgia é um conjunto de manifestações dolorosas que pode acarretar limitações em vários aspectos da vida de um indivíduo. O modelo de Classificação Internacional de Funcionalidade, Incapacidade e Saúde (CIF) proposto pela Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS) fornece uma estrutura para o entendimento da funcionalidade e da incapacidade associadas aos estados de saúde, possibilitando uma descrição significativa da saúde de um indivíduo. A CIF utiliza os termos capacidade e desempenho para se referir a aspectos distintos da função e para diferenciar o estado funcional dos pacientes. Na prática clínica, é necessário saber se existe uma associação entre esses distintos aspectos. OBJETIVOS: Analisar a correlação entre o questionário de desempenho funcional de Roland Morris e os testes de capacidade física (sentado para de pé e a caminhada de 15,24 metros) em pacientes com lombalgia. MÉTODOS: Trinta pacientes com diagnóstico de lombalgia, média de idade de 43,16 anos, foram avaliados com o Roland Morris e os testes de capacidade. RESULTADOS: A análise de correlação de Pearson demonstrou correlação significativa, porém fraca entre o escore do Roland Morris e o Teste Sentado para de Pé (r=0,38; p=0,0388). Não foi observada uma correlação significativa entre o escore do questionário e o teste de caminhada de 15,24 m (r=0,24; p=0,1862). CONCLUSÃO: Esses resultados indicam a necessidade de se utilizarem instrumentos que avaliem ambos os aspectos (capacidade e desempenho) em pacientes com lombalgia, para que se possa definir um perfil funcional mais completo desses indivíduos.
To investigate changes in hand function associated with electrical stimulation for children with ... more To investigate changes in hand function associated with electrical stimulation for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy. An ABCA single-subject design, replicated in two children, was used in this study. Each baseline (phase A) lasted 4 weeks. Intervention consisted of electrical stimulation of wrist extensors (phase B) and of wrist extensors and flexors (phase C) for 15 minutes three times a week. Intervention phases also lasted 4 weeks. Active wrist extension range of movement and three timed manual tasks were tested two times a week every week. Data analysis included the Celeration Line and Two Standard Deviation Band methods in addition to visual analysis. Significant performance gains were observed for both children, especially in phase C, when both extensors and flexors were stimulated. After intervention withdrawal, significant performance decreases were observed on most analysed variables. The observed performance changes seem to be associated with the presence of intervention and suggest that electrical stimulation can be a useful adjunct to improve hand function of children with cerebral palsy.
OBJECTIVES: to perform a systematic literature review through a careful survey of scientific arti... more OBJECTIVES: to perform a systematic literature review through a careful survey of scientific articles investigating serial casting effects in children clinically diagnosed with spastic cerebral palsy. METHODS: systematic literature survey performed during the period of March to August 2004, in Medline, Lilacs and PEDro electronic databases published in English and Portuguese from 1980 to 2004. The evidence level of the articles studied was rated according to the Magee scale. RESULTS: the four articles included in this review met all the inclusion criteria and were rated poor according to the Magee scale (agreement index Kappa K = 1.0) due to the methodological limitations determined. CONCLUSIONS: the evidence used in this systematic review was insufficient to support the use of serial casting in children with cerebral palsy. Further research is required to fulfill the need of higher methodological standards to validate evidence based practice.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the profile of changes in the use of the upper extremity in three child... more OBJECTIVE: To investigate the profile of changes in the use of the upper extremity in three children with hemiplegia submitted to an adapted protocol of constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT). METHODS: A single-subject design (ABA) was replicated in three children aged 8 to 11 years old. Baseline phases (A1) and (A2) and the intervention phase (B) lasted 2 weeks each. During the intervention period, children wore a splint on the non-affected extremity for 10 hours a day and were submitted to 3 hours of therapy a day during 10 days. Training consisted of activities with the affected upper extremity, with gradually increasing complexity and verbal feedback. Hand function was classified according to the Manual Ability Classification System (MACS). Children were assessed four times every week with the Toddler Arm Use Test (TAUT) and three adapted tasks from the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function test (JTHF), and once a week with the Pediatric Motor Activity Log (PMAL) and self-care scales of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI). Celeration Line, Two-Standard Deviation Band and visual analysis methods were used for data analyses. RESULTS: Significant improvements in the amount and quality of upper extremity use (PMAL), TAUT quality of use for children 2 and 3, and participation for child 1, as well as decreased time to complete JTHF tasks for children 2 and 3 were observed. No changes were observed in the PEDI self-care scales. CONCLUSION: CIMT effects were associated with improvements in manual dexterity, amount and quality of use of the affected upper extremity in children with hemiplegia.
OBJECTIVE: to investigate the impact of a thumb abduction orthosis on functional skills of a chil... more OBJECTIVE: to investigate the impact of a thumb abduction orthosis on functional skills of a child with hemiparetic cerebral palsy and mild spasticity. METHODS: an AB single-subject design was used in this study. Baseline A consisted of data collected during a period without intervention (control conditions). The intervention phase B included the use of a thumb abduction orthosis in association with traditional occupational therapy. The baseline lasted six weeks and the intervention period eight weeks. Assessments were performed once a week throughout the study and included hand function tests and range of motion measures for active wrist extension and flexion and thumb abduction and opponency. The Celeration Line and Two-Standard Deviation Band methods, as well as Visual Analysis, were used for data analysis. RESULTS: the child demonstrated significant improvements in the range of active motions. A trend towards a reduction in the time to perform manual tasks was observed, but this was only statistically significant in the case of the task of stacking blocks. CONCLUSION: the results suggest that thumb abduction orthosis may be a useful adjunct treatment to improve the range of active hand motions in children with hemiparetic cerebral palsy.
A variety of definitions of intelligence have been offered that are not exclusively human-centric... more A variety of definitions of intelligence have been offered that are not exclusively human-centric. One, in particular, is taken as a starting point: end-directed behavior marked by the making of meaningful distinctions made possible by perception–action cycles. Specific examples of end-directed behavior are examined for evidence of three aspects of the kind of agency embodied in perception–action cycles, namely, prospectivity, retrospectivity, and flexibility. The chosen examples of behavior are nicely layered but otherwise unremarkable. Nonetheless, they all have an unexpected twist that challenges the kinds of explanations of intelligence qua agency that are rooted in neurobiology.
CONTEXTUALIZAÇÃO: A lombalgia é um conjunto de manifestações dolorosas que pode acarretar limitaç... more CONTEXTUALIZAÇÃO: A lombalgia é um conjunto de manifestações dolorosas que pode acarretar limitações em vários aspectos da vida de um indivíduo. O modelo de Classificação Internacional de Funcionalidade, Incapacidade e Saúde (CIF) proposto pela Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS) fornece uma estrutura para o entendimento da funcionalidade e da incapacidade associadas aos estados de saúde, possibilitando uma descrição significativa da saúde de um indivíduo. A CIF utiliza os termos capacidade e desempenho para se referir a aspectos distintos da função e para diferenciar o estado funcional dos pacientes. Na prática clínica, é necessário saber se existe uma associação entre esses distintos aspectos. OBJETIVOS: Analisar a correlação entre o questionário de desempenho funcional de Roland Morris e os testes de capacidade física (sentado para de pé e a caminhada de 15,24 metros) em pacientes com lombalgia. MÉTODOS: Trinta pacientes com diagnóstico de lombalgia, média de idade de 43,16 anos, foram avaliados com o Roland Morris e os testes de capacidade. RESULTADOS: A análise de correlação de Pearson demonstrou correlação significativa, porém fraca entre o escore do Roland Morris e o Teste Sentado para de Pé (r=0,38; p=0,0388). Não foi observada uma correlação significativa entre o escore do questionário e o teste de caminhada de 15,24 m (r=0,24; p=0,1862). CONCLUSÃO: Esses resultados indicam a necessidade de se utilizarem instrumentos que avaliem ambos os aspectos (capacidade e desempenho) em pacientes com lombalgia, para que se possa definir um perfil funcional mais completo desses indivíduos.
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