Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation Versus Virtual Reality on Gait in Children With Spastic Diplegia

Summary

Spastic diplegia is the most frequent type of cerebral palsy (CP), and impaired gait is a common sequela of this condition. The investigators compared the effects of two novel research interventions transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and virtual reality (VR) on gait impairments in children with spastic diplegia.

Currently, both tDCS and VR require further investigation to determine their clinical effectiveness for children with CP. Thus, the aim of this study was to compare the effects of tDCS and VR training on spatiotemporal and kinetic gait parameters in children with spastic diplegia, as a supplemental intervention to traditional physical therapy.

Conditions

• Cerebral Palsy

Interventions

DEVICE

Transcranial direct current stimulation

Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS), over the motor cortex, is a potential therapy option for motor control deficits in children with CP. The application of tDCS involves positioning 2 rubber electrodes sheathed in saline-soaked pads onto the scalp, held in place by a rubber strap. Low-intensity, direct-current, of 1 to 2 mA, is delivered to cortical areas from the device. The standard-of-care gait training included various gait training and balance tasks as well as resistive exercises and passive stretching as necessary. Task-specific gait exercises included: walking in a closed indoor environment, walking in an open indoor environment, walking on various floor surfaces, and climbing stairs up and down without assistance. The children also performed dynamic balance exercises by walking on a balance board.

DEVICE

Virtual reality

Virtual reality rehabilitation is an emerging therapy for motor rehabilitation of children with CP. The therapy is provided through a computer-simulated environment where they interact with real-world-like objects and events through sight, sound, and touch. The Wii Remote was used as the interactive interface, and standard computer/television screens were used as the display hardware. Therefore, VR therapy was of the non-immersive type. The standard-of-care gait training included various gait training and balance tasks as well as resistive exercises and passive stretching as necessary. Task-specific gait exercises included: walking in a closed indoor environment, walking in an open indoor environment, walking on various floor surfaces, and climbing stairs up and down without assistance. The children also performed dynamic balance exercises by walking on a balance board.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Shirley Ryan AbilityLab

  collaborator OTHER

• Cairo University

  collaborator OTHER

• Beni-Suef University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Hoda Eltalawy, PT, PhD · Cairo University, Egypt

• Asmaa Radwan, PT, MSc · Beni-Suef University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

7 Years

Max Age

12 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2020-11-11

Primary Completion

2021-08-14

Completion

2021-08-14

Countries

• Egypt

Study Locations