Influence of trunk control and lower extremity impairments on gait capacity in children with cerebral palsy

AbstractPurpose: We investigated the combined impact of trunk control and lower extremities impairments on predicting gait capacity in children with cerebral palsy (CP) and evaluated relationships between trunk control and lower extremities impairments.Methods: Data of 52 children with CP [29 boys, mean age 11 years 9 months (±4 years 6 months)] were included in this observational study. Gait capacity was measured by the “modified Time Up and Go test”. Experienced therapists performed the “Modified Ashworth Scale”, “Manual Muscle Test”, the “Selective Control Assessment of the Lower Extremity”, and the “Trunk Control Measurement Scale”. We calculated Spearman correlations coefficients (ρ) and performed regression analyses.Results: Trunk control was the strongest predictor (β = –0.624, p < 0.001) when explaining the variance of gait capacity and remained in the model together with spasticity (R2 = 0.67). Muscle strength and selectivity correlated moderately to strongly with the trunk control and gait capac...