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Mirror therapy in children with hemiplegia: a pilot study
Author(s) -
GYGAX MARINE JEQUIER,
SCHNEIDER PATRICK,
NEWMAN CHRISTOPHER JOHN
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
developmental medicine and child neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.658
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1469-8749
pISSN - 0012-1622
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8749.2011.03924.x
Subject(s) - hemiparesis , physical medicine and rehabilitation , upper limb , rehabilitation , hand strength , grasp , physical therapy , stroke (engine) , psychology , medicine , grip strength , surgery , computer science , physics , lesion , thermodynamics , programming language
Mirror therapy, which provides the visual illusion of a functional paretic limb by using the mirror reflection of the non‐paretic arm, is used in the rehabilitation of hemiparesis after stroke in adults. We tested the effectiveness and feasibility of mirror therapy in children with hemiplegia by performing a pilot crossover study in ten participants (aged 6–14y; five males, five females; Manual Ability Classification System levels: one at leveI I, two at level II, four at level III, three at level IV) randomly assigned to 15 minutes of daily bimanual training with and without a mirror for 3 weeks. Assessments of maximal grasp and pinch strengths, and upper limb function measured by the Shriner’s Hospital Upper Extremity Evaluation were performed at weeks 0 (baseline), 3, 6 (intervention), and 9 (wash‐out). Testing of grasp strength behind the mirror improved performance by 15% ( p =0.004). Training with the mirror significantly improved grasp strength (with mirror +20.4%, p =0.033; without +5.9%, p >0.1) and upper limb dynamic position (with mirror +4.6%, p =0.044; without +1.2%, p >0.1), while training without a mirror significantly improved pinch strength (with mirror +6.9%, p >0.1; without +21.9%, p =0.026). This preliminary study demonstrates the feasibility of mirror therapy in children with hemiplegia and that it may improve strength and dynamic function of the paretic arm.