Analysis of a Group-Based Treadmill Program for Children with Neuromotor Delay Who Are Pre-Ambulatory

Abstract

Purpose

To analyze data from a prospective cohort study, a group-based treadmill program, administered twice weekly for 14 weeks, in regard to gross motor skills related to walking and walking attainment in young children with neuromotor delay who are pre-ambulatory.

Methods

Seventy children (F = 29), mean age 25.6 (SD 10.1) months participated in the program 2×/week for 14 weeks. The Gross Motor Function Measure-88 Dimensions D and E (GMFM D/E), Functional Mobility Scale for 5, 50, and 500 meters (FMS 5, 50, 500), the timed 10-m walk test (10MWT), and the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory Caregiver Mobility Scale (PEDI) were administered before and after the program.

Results

Statistically significant improvements were found in the GMFM D, GMFM E, FMS 5, 50, 500 and PEDI, but not in 10MWT.

Conclusions

A group-based treadmill program was associated with improvements in motor skills related to walking in young children when administered in adjunct to ongoing physical therapy.

Keywords:

• Cerebral palsy
• developmental delay
• genetic syndromes
• locomotion
• treadmill training

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Dr. Greg Hurtz, PhD, for his assistance with statistical analysis. I would also like to thank the families and children who participated in STEPS.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data Availability Statement

This study falls in the category “program evaluation”. Therefore, the data from this study is available by request from the author.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by University Enterprises, Inc. Sacramento State, CA under Grant number 008254; Campus Grant Program, Sacramento State, CA under Grant number 160344; Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, UC Davis MIND Institute; ‘Pillars of Giving’, Easter Seals Superior, Sacramento, CA

Notes on contributors

Katrin Mattern-Baxter

Katrin Mattern-Baxter is a Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Sacramento State, CA. She is an American Physical Therapy Association Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Pediatric Physical Therapy. With over 30 years of clinical experience, her research focuses on the development and dosage of interventions that result in optimal walking outcomes for children with CP and other developmental disabilities. She has received extramural funding and the results of her studies have been published in high impact international journals. In 2013, she developed the Supported Treadmill Exercise Program Sacramento State/Easter Seals (STEPS), which has helped over 80 toddlers with motor impairment achieve walking onset.