Effects of Trunk Training on Trunk, Upper and Lower Limb Motor Functions in Children with Spastic Cerebral Palsy: A Stratified Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of trunk training on the trunk, upper and lower limb motor functions of children with bilateral spastic Cerebral Palsy. Methods: 36 children were recruited for this study; 19 children were included in the trunk training group and 17 children were included in the control group. Motor functions of the children were assessed by the Trunk Control Measurement Scale, Gross Motor Function Measurement, Quality of Upper Extremity Skills Test, Pediatric Balance Scale, Gillette Functional Assessment Scale, Functional Independence Measure for Children and Impact on Family Scale at baseline and after an 8 week of intervention period. Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test and Mann–Whitney U Test were used to assess the differences. Results: The Trunk Control Measurement Scale (p=0.008), Gross Motor Function Measurement (p=0.047), Quality of Upper Extremity Skills Test (p=0.032), Pediatric Balance Scale (p=0.006), Gillette Functional Assessment Scale (p=0.011) and Functional Independence Measure for Children (p=0.03) scores improved in favor of the trunk training group (p<0.05). Conclusion: Individually structured trunk training is a promising method to improve trunk, upper and lower extremity motor functions and activity levels of children with bilateral spastic Cerebral Palsy