The efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy intervention in gross motor function, performance, and spasticity in children with Cerebral Palsy

Alexandra N Stergiou; Sanna Mattila-Rautiainen; Dimitrios N Varvarousis; Meropi Tzoufi; Panagiota Plyta; Alexandros Beris; Avraam Ploumis

doi:10.3389/fvets.2023.1203481

The efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy intervention in gross motor function, performance, and spasticity in children with Cerebral Palsy

Front Vet Sci. 2023 Aug 15:10:1203481. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1203481. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Alexandra N Stergiou^{1

2}, Sanna Mattila-Rautiainen³, Dimitrios N Varvarousis⁴, Meropi Tzoufi⁵, Panagiota Plyta^{1

2}, Alexandros Beris⁶, Avraam Ploumis¹

Affiliations

¹ Division of Surgery, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Ioannina Medical School, Ioannina, Greece.
² Ioannina Therapeutic Riding Center, Ioannina, Greece.
³ Sports and Exercise Medicine, Biomedicine, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.
⁴ Department of Anatomy, University of Ioannina Medical School, Ioannina, Greece.
⁵ Division of Child's Health, Department of Paediatrics, University of Ioannina Medical School, Ioannina, Greece.
⁶ Division of Surgery, Department of Orthopaedics, University of Ioannina Medical School, Ioannina, Greece.

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of Equine Assisted Therapy in children with Cerebral Palsy, in terms of gross motor function, performance, and spasticity as well as whether this improvement can be maintained for 2 months after the end of the intervention.

Methods: Children with Cerebral Palsy participated in this prospective cohort study. The study lasted for 28 weeks, of which the equine assisted therapy lasted 12 weeks taking place once a week for 30 min. Repeated measures within the subject design were used for the evaluation of each child's physical performance and mental capacity consisting of six measurements: Gross Motor Function Measure-88 (GMFM-88), Gross Motor Performance Measure (GMPM), Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS), Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC III).

Results: Statistically significant improvements were achieved for 31 children in Gross Motor Function Measure and all its subcategories (p < 0.005), also in total Gross Motor Performance Measure and all subcategories (p < 0.005). These Gross Motor Function Measure results remained consistent for 2 months after the last session of the intervention. Regarding spasticity, although an improving trend was seen, this was not found to be statistically significant.

Conclusion and implications: Equine Assisted Therapy improves motor ability (qualitatively and quantitatively) in children with Cerebral Palsy, with clinical significance in gross motor function.

Keywords: Cerebral Palsy; equine assisted therapies; gross motor function; gross motor performance; spasticity.