RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To observe the therapeutic effect of hydrotherapy with Chinese drugs (HT-C) in early intervention on children hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE). METHODS: HIE children were assigned to the treatment group and the control group, 50 in each, at random depending on the willingness of patients' parents. Both groups received the conventional functional training, according to the "0 -3-year-old early intervention outline", but for the treatment group, HT-C was applied additionally. Indexes for quality of sleep, gross motor function, severity of spasm and intellectual development were observed and compared before and after treatment to assess the therapeutic effects. RESULTS: Therapeutic effect in the treatment group was better than that in the control group in all the indexes observed, showing statistical significance (all P <0.05). CONCLUSION: Early intervention of HT-C could improve clinical symptom, promote the functional recovery and intellectual development in children HIE, and also could reduce or prevent the sequelae occurrence of the nervous system in them.