Effect of increased exposure to physiotherapy on skill acquisition of children with cerebral palsy.

This pilot study reports the effects of increased exposure to standard physiotherapy on seven children with quadriplegic cerebral palsy and severe learning difficulties. The children's progress toward certain goals was accelerated during the period of intense physiotherapy, but progress toward other goals was less consistently affected. These skills were maintained, and in some cases improved upon, when therapy became less frequent, provided they were associated with daily functional activities understood by the children and not requiring increased assistance by the carer. The identification of specific, measurable goals can help establish the effectiveness of treatment for such children and may in itself have beneficial effects on compliance and outcome.