Therapeutic effect of the new multilevel brace orthosis on cerebral palsy gait: a case report.

Background: Infantile spastic bilateral cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common form of CP. Diplegia (with ambulatory ability) is mostly a chronic condition that impairs the ability to walk. Standard orthotic management includes hip-knee-ankle-foot orthosis (HKAFO) as a pri-mary conservative treatment option to contrast spasticity and stabilise gait through partial immobilisation of the body structure.

Effectiveness of Psychomotor Therapy among Children with Graphomotor Impairment with and without DCD-Diagnosis.

In Switzerland, psychomotor therapy (PMT) is a standard treatment for children with graphomotor impairments, but scientific evidence of its effectiveness is rare. To investigate the effectiveness of PMT, we conducted a randomised field trial (RFT). The sample consisted of 121 first and second graders with graphomotor impairments, some of whom met the criteria of developmental coordination disorder, while the remaining suffered from developmental dysgraphia.

Validation of the Concise Assessment Scale for Children's Handwriting (BHK) in an Italian Population.

Handwriting difficulties represent a common complaint among children and may cause a significant delay in motor skills achievement. The Concise Assessment Scale for Children's Handwriting (BHK) assesses handwriting skill in clinical and experimental settings, providing a quick evaluation of handwriting quality and speed through a copying text. The aim of the present study was to validate the Italian adaptation of the BHK in a representative primary school population.

Covid-19 lockdown and consequences in Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatrists' work and symptomatology perception.

Objectives: The Sars-Cov-2 pandemic changed children everyday activities and the way medical doctors visit their patients, especially during lockdown periods. Object of this work is to investigate the Sars-Cov-2 lockdown consequences in Latium Region, Italy, from the perspective of the Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatrists operating in the area.

Materials And Methods: A ten questions questionnaire was arranged and sent immediately after the end of the lockdown: it included a preliminary query on the reduction of the specialists' clinical activity, and nine queries on the perception of changes in their patients' psychopathological symptoms and/or adaptive behaviors during the lockdown.

Handwriting in Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder: Is Legibility the Only Indicator of a Poor Performance?

Research on the use of speed, as an indicator of motor handwriting problems, is controversial and the legibility of the text is the measure mostly examined in children. This case-control study compared handwriting legibility and speed in 25 children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and 75 typically developing peers matched by school grade (third and fourth grade). Children with DCD achieved significantly lower scores than their peers in both legibility and speed measures, overall and in the third and in the fourth grade independently.

Being adults with cerebral palsy: results of a multicenter Italian study on quality of life and participation.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is still the most common cause of disability developing in infancy. How such a complex disorder affects adult life raises important questions on the critical issues to consider and the most appropriate care pathway right from early childhood. We conducted a multicenter study on a sample of 109 individuals with CP followed up from infancy and recalled for an assessment at ages ranging between 18 and 50 years (mean age 26 years).

Reading and Writing Skills in Children With Specific Learning Disabilities With and Without Developmental Coordination Disorder.

This pilot study is to investigate the influence of a developmental coordination disorder (DCD) comorbidity in a group of children with learning disability (LD). Reading and writing were assessed to investigate if the coexistence of a motor impairment can worsen writing quality, speed, and reading accuracy. A sample of 33 LD children (aged 7-11 years) was divided in two subgroups, on the base of their scores on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children: LD-only (n = 14) and LD with a comorbidity for DCD (LD-DCD, n = 19).

Efficacy of a task-based training approach in the rehabilitation of three children with poor handwriting quality: a pilot study.

Evidence suggests that task-based training approaches can improve the performance of children with handwriting difficulties. The present case study tests the efficacy of the Handwriting Task Program (HTP). Three male children (9-10 yr.

Dynamic time warping: a new method in the study of poor handwriting.

Poor handwriting is a diagnostic criterion for developmental coordination disorder. Typical of poor handwriting is its low overall quality and the high variability of the spatial characteristics of the letters, usually assessed with a subjective handwriting scale. Recently, Dynamic Time Warping (DTW), a technique originally developed for speech recognition, was introduced for pattern recognition in handwriting.