Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 90, Issue 1 , Pages 27-33, January 2009

The Impact of Adaptive Seating Devices on the Lives of Young Children With Cerebral Palsy and Their Families

Presented to the International Seating Symposium, March 9, 2007, Orlando, FL.

  • Stephen E. Ryan, MSc, PEng

      Affiliations

    • Bloorview Research Institute, Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • Departments of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorrespondence to Stephen E. Ryan, MSc, PEng, Bloorview Research Institute, Bloorview Kids Rehab, 150 Kilgour Rd, Toronto, ON, Canada, M4G 1R8
    • ,
  • Kent A. Campbell, PhD

      Affiliations

    • Departments of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • Public Health Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • Graduate Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • ,
  • Patricia J. Rigby, MHSc, OTReg(Ont)

      Affiliations

    • Bloorview Research Institute, Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • Departments of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • ,
  • Barbara Fishbein-Germon, MSW, RSW
    • ,
  • Darlene Hubley, BSc, OTReg(Ont)

      Affiliations

    • Bloorview Research Institute, Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, Canada
    • ,
  • Betty Chan, MSc, OTReg(Ont)

      Affiliations

    • Bloorview Research Institute, Bloorview Kids Rehab, Toronto, ON, Canada

Abstract 

Ryan SE, Campbell KA, Rigby PJ, Fishbein-Germon B, Hubley D, Chan B. The impact of adaptive seating devices on the lives of young children with cerebral palsy and their families.

Objective

To determine the parent-perceived effect of adaptive seating devices on the lives of young children with cerebral palsy (CP) (aged 2–7y) and their families.

Design

Baseline-intervention-baseline study.

Setting

Homes of participating families.

Participants

Thirty parents and their children with Gross Motor Function Classification System level III or IV CP.

Interventions

Two special-purpose seating devices: 1 for sitting support on the floor or on a chair and the other for postural control on a toilet.

Main Outcome Measures

Family Impact of Assistive Technology Scale (FIATS) and Impact on Family Scale (IFS).

Results

Thirty parents (29 mothers, 1 father) and their children with CP participated. Repeated-measures analysis of variance detected significant mean differences among the FIATS scores (F1.4,40.6=19.25, P<.001). Post hoc testing confirmed significant mean differences in overall FIATS scores between baseline and intervention and intervention and postintervention phases. The test of within-subject effects did not detect a significant change among IFS mean scores.

Conclusions

The introduction of adaptive seating devices for young children who need support to sit had a meaningful, positive impact on child and family life. Removal of the study devices showed a concomitant negative impact on key aspects of child and family life. Environmental resources, such as seating and other assistive technology devices, may have an important role to play in the lives of young children with physical disabilities and their families.

Key Words: Cerebral palsy, Family, Rehabilitation, Treatment outcome

List of Abbreviations: ANOVA, analysis of variance, CP, cerebral palsy, FIATS, Family Impact of Assistive Technology Scale, GMFCS, Gross Motor Function Classification System, ICC, intraclass correlation coefficient, IFS, Impact on Family Scale

 

 Supported by SickKids Foundation/Institute for Human Development, Child and Youth Health – Canadian Institutes of Health Research (grant no. XG 04-088).

 We certify that we have affiliations with an organization with a financial interest in the subject materials discussed in the manuscript. The seating devices described in this study were developed at Bloorview Kids Rehab in Toronto, ON, Canada. Bloorview receives royalties from the sale of these devices from Otto Bock HealthCare Canada Limited.

 Reprints are not available from the author.

PII: S0003-9993(08)01541-4

doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2008.07.011

Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Volume 90, Issue 1 , Pages 27-33, January 2009

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