LEARN 2 MOVE 0-2 years: effects of a new intervention program in infants at very high risk for cerebral palsy; a randomized controlled trial

Infants are included at the corrected age of 1 to 9 months and randomized into a group receiving COPCA and a group receiving traditional infant physiotherapy. Both interventions are given once a week during one year. Measurements are performed at baseline, during and after the intervention period and at the corrected age of 21 months. Primary outcome of the study is the Infant Motor Profile, a qualitative evaluation instrument of motor behaviour in infancy. Secondary measurements focus on activities and participation, body functions and structures, family functioning, quality of life and working mechanisms. To cope with the heterogeneity in physiotherapy, physiotherapeutic sessions are video-recorded three times (baseline, after 6 months and at the end of the intervention period). Physiotherapeutic actions will be quantified and related to outcome.LEARN 2 MOVE 0-2 years evaluates and explores the effects of COPCA and TIP. Whatever the outcome of the project, it will improve our understanding of early intervention in children with cerebral palsy. Such knowledge is a prerequisite for tailor-made guidance of children with CP and their families.The trial is registered under NTR1428.Cerebral Palsy (CP) is the most common cause of physical disability in pediatric rehabilitation [1]. Little evidence exists that current interventions are effective in optimizing daily life functioning [2]. LEARN 2 MOVE 0-2 (L2M 0-2) is part of the Dutch national LEARN 2 MOVE research program [3-5], which evaluates new interventions in rehabilitation for children and adolescents with CP in different age cohorts.Because the diagnosis CP requires an age of at least 18 months [6,7], L2M 0-2 focuses on infants at high risk for CP. Neurological findings, the presence of a lesion of the brain or other factors may indicate that infants are at risk for CP. It is generally assumed that infants at risk for CP need physiotherapy. Theoretically, intervention at early age when the brain is very plastic, s