THE EVOLUTION OF GAIT IN CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENT CEREBRAL-PALSY

A longitudinal study over a mean of 32 months was conducted on 18 subj ects with spastic diplegia, ranging in age from 4 to 14 years. Three-d imensional gait analyses were performed to compare the temporal and ki nematic data across the two time intervals. The comparison revealed a deterioration of gait stability evidenced by increases in double suppo rt and decreases in single support with time and growth (p < 0.05). Ki nematic analysis revealed a loss of excursion about the knee, ankle, a nd pelvis (p < 0.05). Additionally, passive range-of-motion analysis r evealed a decrease in the popliteal angle over time (p < 0.05). In con clusion, this longitudinal investigation revealed that, in contrast to the gait of children with intact motor function, ambulatory ability t ends to worsen over time in spastic cerebral palsy. Insight into the n atural progression of gait function in cerebral palsy is essential whe n evaluating the change in motor status over time or the effects of an intervention in this population.