Gross motor functioning, manual ability and communication of children with cerebral palsy / 中华物理医学与康复杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the gross motor function, manual ability and language communication of children with cerebral palsy (CP) and their correlation.Methods:A total of 318 children with CP (132 with spastic diplegia, 27 with spastic quadriplegia, 32 with spastic hemiplegia, 54 with dyskinesia, 41 with ataxia and 32 children with multiple difficulties) aged 4 to 12 years were classified according to the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS), the Manual Ability Classification System (MACS), and the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS). Spearman correlation coefficients were used to analyze the correlation among the three ratings.Results:Only 125 of the 318 children (39%) had the same classification level according to all three scales, showing moderate correlation and different levels for patients with different types of disability. The GMFCS and MACS levels of the subjects with spastic quadriplegia and those with dyskinesia were highly correlated. The GMFCS and CFCS levels of the hemiplegic children and those with spastic quadriplegia were also highly correlated. The MACS and CFCS levels were strongly correlated for children with spastic quadriplegia and multiple disabilities.Conclusions:The functioning of children with CP differs with their CP subtype. Correlations among the three functional assessments also differ for children with different subtypes. Combining the three classification systems provides a more comprehensive picture of the children′s ability to function in daily life.