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Movement Quality of Infants Correlates with IQ at School Age

Pediatrics published research on 60 preterm infants (range 25-33 weeks) without cerebral palsy. The infants were videotaped and movement was analyzed until 17 weeks post term. General movements were established as normal or abnormal. When the children were then 7-11 years old, intelligence testing was performed. Results indicated that if general movements were normal by […]

Grant Available for Children with Disabilities

CVS Caremark Community Grants are accepting applications for grant awards until October 31, 2010. These grants are specifically for children with disabilities: “Our CVS Caremark Community Grants support programs that promote independence among children with disabilities including physical and occupational therapies, speech and hearing therapies, assistive technology and recreational therapies.” These grants are awarded to […]

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PT Education and Cystic Fibrosis

A recent article in the Journal of Cystic Fibrosis reports that physical therapy education was very stressful for parents of toddlers with cystic fibrosis. The parents reported “psychological distress” from PT education. There were three factors that influenced the parents education: large volumes of information, educational resources and timing of education. The researchers recommend specific […]

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Visual Impairment and Wii

Here is an interesting free download to adapt two Wii games for use with children who are visually impaired – VI Fit. This adapts Wii Tennis and Bowling. The VI Fit download provides audio and vibrotactile cues to direct the players where to hit and direct the balls. VI Tennis was tested on a group […]

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Effects of Standing Programs on Walking in Children with CP

Physical and Occupational Therapy in Pediatrics published research on the effects of prolonged standing on the walking patterns of children with cerebral palsy. Six children with spastic cerebral palsy (Gross Motor Function Classification Levels II and III) participated in this study over a period of 9 weeks. The first three weeks the children received physical […]

Injuries in Children Who Use Pediatric Mobility Aids

Pediatrics will be publishing research in the incidence of injuries related to pediatric mobility aids such as wheelchairs and crutches. US hospital records were analyzed from 1991-2008. Over 63,000 children, 19 years and younger, were evaluated in the emergency room for injuries related to mobility devices. The highest rate of injury occurred in wheelchair users […]

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Recommended Evaluation Tools for Developmental Coordination Disorder

Pediatric Physical Therapy has published research analyzing seven performance based measures of gross motor skill development for use with children with developmental coordination disorder. The Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC – Version 1)and the Test of Gross Motor Development Version 2 scored highest on the comparison. The researchers recommend starting with these two previously […]