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Abstract
Background: There is an increasing need to assess the evidence of a multidisciplinary approach for both short-term and long-term management of neurological sequelae arising from the diagnosis and treatment of brain tumors in childhood. Methods: We performed a systematic review of the evidence base for multidisciplinary paediatric brain tumor rehabilitation using seven databases. PRISMA guidelines were adhered to and the review was registered with the PROSPERO international prospective register of systematic reviews (registration number CRD42014015070). Results: The literature search identified 3,061 results. Three service evaluations were included. The review identified limited evidence in favor of multidisciplinary rehabilitation for children with brain tumors. Due to the lack of controlled trial data and heterogeneity of the interventions and outcome measures, no meta-analysis could be performed. Conclusions: Studies utilising a coordinated multi-centre approach with standardized outcome measures are recommended in order to enable robust assessment of the efficacy of multidisciplinary rehabilitation services.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Katie Johnson, David Young, Antonia Kilcommons, Kate Stephens, Ana Reis, Angela Kirby, Kathy Cox and Ailsa Bowring for their support and feedback in completing this review.
Declaration of interest
The authors report no conflicts of interest. Brainbow is an NHS neurorehabilitation service funded by the charities Anna’s Hope (Anna’s Hope Therapy Team), Camille’s Appeal and Tom’s Trust.