Screening for Developmental Delays in Pediatric Cochlea Implant Candidates and Recipients.

Objective: Conduct a pilot clinical improvement project to effectively screen children with hearing loss for developmental delays. Children with hearing loss and cochlear implants (CIs) are at risk for additional developmental delays; however, screening to aid in early identification and referral for developmental delays is not routinely performed at CI centers. It is important to consider all aspects of child development to maximize CI outcomes and access to language.

The effect of constraint-induced movement therapy for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy in Vietnam.

Purpose: Pediatric constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) is an evidence-based treatment that has a long history of demonstrating efficacy for children with hemiparesis. The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of a culturally responsive CIMT program for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (CP) developed for the Vietnam healthcare system.

Methods: Thirty children with hemiplegic CP (mean age = 2.

Neuromotor Rehabilitation Interventions After Pediatric Stroke: A Focused Review.

Pediatric stroke is a condition that often results in life-long motor, cognitive, or sensory deficits for children. The purpose of this focused review is to compile the most recent literature on pediatric stroke neuromotor interventions and summarize evidence for use by rehabilitation providers and researchers. Terms including stroke, pediatric, and neuromotor were searched with appropriate MeSH terms.

Pediatric unilateral spatial neglect: A systematic review.

Purpose: Unilateral spatial neglect (USN), an inability to attend to one side of space or one's body, is commonly reported in adult stroke survivors and is associated with poor outcomes. USN has been reported in pediatric survivors of stroke, but its impact is unclear. The purpose of this systematic review was to summarize and evaluate the literature regarding USN in pediatric stroke survivors.

The Impact of Early Neuroimaging and Developmental Assessment in a Preterm Infant Diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy.

Premature infants are at risk for cerebral palsy (CP) that is typically diagnosed between 18-24 months. We present a case study of an infant who was discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) without obvious neurological deficits but was later diagnosed with hemiplegic CP. The infant was enrolled in an infant motor study, which included neuroimaging and developmental motor assessments.

Early developmental assessment with a short screening test, the STEP, predicts one-year outcomes.

Objective: To evaluate the Specific Test of Early Infant Motor Performance (STEP), a rapid screening test of preterm infants at risk for developmental delay.

Study Design: We prospectively studied 23 preterm infants' performance on the STEP and the Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP) at term and 3 months, and on the Bayley-III at 12 months. We investigated the psychometric qualities of the STEP and determined STEP cutoff scores for low and high-performing infants.

How Accurately Do Both Parents and Health Professionals Assess Overweight in Children?

Background: An accurate perception of weight status is important to prevent childhood obesity.

Objective: We investigated whether parents and health professionals accurately identify children's weight status.

Methods: On the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey: National Youth Fitness Survey, parents and health professionals rated the same child's weight status as overweight or healthy.

Exploring the feasibility and use of accelerometers before, during, and after a camp-based CIMT program for children with cerebral palsy.

Purpose: The aim of this pilot study was to determine the feasibility and use accelerometers before, during, and after a camp-based constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT) program for children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy.

Methods: A pre-test post-test design was used for 12 children with CP (mean = 4.9 yrs) who completed a 30-hour camp-based CIMT program.

Predicting motor outcomes with 3 month prone hip angles in premature infants.

Purpose: This study used kinematic analysis to identify a reliable and rapid assessment method for abnormal patterns of motor development in preterm infants.

Methods: In a retrospective analysis, we examined video of n= 35 preterm infants at 3mo corrected age (CA) who had concurrent Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP) scores. Hyperflexion at the hip produces common gait anomalies seen in children with CP, therefore we analyzed hip angle in the prone head lift position at 3 months CA.

Correlating early motor skills to white matter abnormalities in preterm infants using diffusion tensor imaging.

Purpose: Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can detect injury to specific white matter (WM) tracts involved with sensorimotor processing and may provide sensitive measures for latent or nascent motor skills. We hypothesized that DTI measures of WM fractional anisotropy (FA) could predict early motor scores on a standardized assessment in a cohort of preterm infants at risk for WM injury.

Methods: In this prospective study, preterm infants (n= 26, 11 female, 15 male, mean gestational age 29.

Relationship Between Physical Activity and Overweight and Obesity in Children: Findings From the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey National Youth Fitness Survey.

Objective: This study examined the relationship between childhood obesity and overweight and functional activity and its enjoyment.

Method: A cross-sectional design was used to analyze data from the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey National Youth Fitness Survey. Multivariate logistic regression models were used.

Training Paediatric Therapists to Deliver Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy (CIMT) in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Hospitals and therapists in developing countries often seek to learn how to deliver new forms of evidenced-based practice (EBP), including paediatric constraint-induced movement therapy (CIMT). This study examines a partnership implemented in Ethiopia, which trained therapists in CIMT and proposes a framework for sustainable EBP training. The aim of this study is to apply a translational and implementation framework to build capacity for CIMT in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that included intensive in-country training and hands-on delivery with patients, followed by clinical implementation and feedback.

Kinematic measurement of 12-week head control correlates with 12-month neurodevelopment in preterm infants.

Background: Although new interventions treating neonatal brain injury show great promise, our current ability to predict clinical functional outcomes is poor. Quantitative biomarkers of long-term neurodevelopmental outcome are critically needed to gauge treatment efficacy. Kinematic measures derived from commonly used developmental tasks may serve as early objective markers of future motor outcomes.

Use of simulated patients and reflective video analysis to assess occupational therapy students' preparedness for fieldwork.

Educators must determine whether occupational therapy students are adequately prepared for Level II fieldwork once they have successfully completed the didactic portion of their coursework. Although studies have shown that students regard the use of video cameras and simulated patient encounters as useful tools for assessing professional and clinical behaviors, little has been published in the occupational therapy literature regarding the practical application of simulated patients or reflective video analysis. We describe a model for a final Comprehensive Practical Exam that uses both simulated patients and reflective video analysis to assess student preparedness for Level II fieldwork, and we report on student perceptions of these instructional modalities.

Identifying premature infants at high and low risk for motor delays using motor performance testing and MRS.

Purpose: To determine specific motor skills in premature infants, match those that correlate with standards tests of motor performance, and MRS measures of abnormal brain biochemistry.

Methods: Prospective cohort study of preterm infants (n=22). Infant motor assessments were completed at term and 12 weeks corrected gestational age (CGA) using the Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP) and Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III at 12 months CGA.

The development of clinical reasoning and interprofessional behaviors: service-learning at a student-run free clinic.

This article examines the benefits of a student run free clinic (SRFC) as a service learning experience for students in medicine, pharmacy, occupational therapy, physical therapy and physician assistant programs. We hypothesized that students who participate in an interprofessional service learning course and volunteer at a SRFC would demonstrate significant increases in perceptions and attitudes for working in interprofessional health care teams and clinical reasoning skills compared to students who did not participate. Three assessments were administered to an experimental and control group of pre-clinical students from medical, occupational therapy, physical therapy, pharmacy and physician assistant programs before and after participation in an interprofessional service-learning course and volunteering at the SRFC.

The Caring Professionals Program: educational approaches that integrate caring attitudes and empathic behaviors into health professions education.

Caring attitudes and empathic behaviors are considered by most Americans to be an essential and intrinsic element of appropriate health care, yet little attention is given to this in the curricula of most healthcare professional training programs. This paper describes an ongoing educational intervention to develop healthcare professionals with caring attitudes and empathic behaviors that will be sustained in their professional practice environments. The Caring Professionals Program was designed to enhance and redesign existing learning experiences in four academic programs: physical therapy, occupational therapy, physician assistant, and nurse practitioner.

The effects of oral motor stimulation on feeding behaviors of infants born with univentricle anatomy.

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine the effects of oral motor stimulation on infants born with complex univentricle anatomy who required surgery shortly after birth. A quasi-experimental group design was used to compare 18 infants receiving an oral motor stimulation program with 10 infants who did not receive any oral motor intervention. Infants in the treatment group received the oral motor treatment prior to cardiac surgery and immediately following surgery, one time a day, 6 days a week.