Effect of Biofeedback-Enhanced Exergaming, Exergaming Alone, and Traditional Physical Therapy on Motor Function, Adherence, and Engagement in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A RCT

Summary

Cerebral Palsy (CP) accounts for approximately 0.9% of the global disease burden and affects 2.4-4% of children under 5 years old, with associated developmental and coordination impairments. Pediatric physical therapy aims to enhance independence and quality of life; however, maintaining adherence to conventional treatment remains a major challenge due to its repetitive and monotonous nature, leading to reduced motivation and limited functional progress.

Exergaming, integrating physical activity with interactive video games, has emerged as an engaging alternative shown to improve motor function, balance, and coordination in children with motor impairments. While existing evidence supports its effectiveness, few randomized studies have explored the addition of real-time physiological biofeedback (e.g., surface EMG with motion tracking) within exergaming platforms. Evidence on adherence and engagement outcomes also remains limited.

This trial addresses that gap by investigating the combined effects of biofeedback-enhanced exergaming versus exergaming alone and traditional physiotherapy in children with CP (GMFCS levels I-II). Incorporating real-time biofeedback provides immediate physiological feedback, potentially enhancing motor learning, motivation, and adherence, key components for improving long-term rehabilitation outcomes in pediatric populations.

Conditions

• Cerebral Palsy

Interventions

OTHER

exergaming

The exergaming program will use Kinect Adventures (River Rush, Reflex Ridge) for balance and agility, Kinect Sports for lower-limb activation and coordination, Just Dance Kids for rhythmic stepping, and Kinect Party/Happy Action Theater for free movement. Optional MIRA Rehab modules may target posture and agility. Sessions will occur three times weekly for twelve weeks, beginning with a light warm-up, followed by 20-30 minutes of targeted exergames, and ending with a cool-down. Game difficulty will increase as children improve, and therapists will track progress using scores and completion times.

OTHER

biofeedback-enhanced exergaming

This group will perform the same exergames as Intervention 1 but with real-time visual, auditory, and optional vibration feedback to enhance motor learning. Surface EMG (Delsys Trigno) will record bilateral muscle activity, and Microsoft Kinect SDK (v2/Azure) will track joint motion and posture. Session frequency and duration will be identical.

OTHER

Traditional Physical Therapy

Children in this group will receive standard physical therapy to improve gross motor function, especially balance and mobility. Sessions will be held three times per week for twelve weeks, lasting 30-45 minutes. The protocol includes a 5-minute warm-up, 12-15 minutes of strengthening for hip, knee, and ankle muscles, 8-10 minutes of balance training using wobble boards or foam, and 8-10 minutes of functional mobility tasks such as sit-to-stand and stair practice, followed by a 2-5 minute cool-down. Therapists will follow standardized instructions, and treatment fidelity will be monitored through checklists, with 10% of sessions audited monthly.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Ziauddin University

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

6 Years

Max Age

12 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-12-15

Primary Completion

2026-06-01

Completion

2026-08-01

Countries

• Pakistan

Study Locations