Chen Chiao-Nan Joyce, Hwang Ai-Wen, Lin Shang-Ying, Lin Yu-Chieh
C-N. Chen, PT, PhD, Department of Physical Therapy, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan.
A-W. Hwang, PT, PhD, Graduate Institute of Early Intervention, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, 259 Wen-Hwa 1st Rd, Kweishan, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan.
Phys Ther. 2014 Oct;94(10):1434-42. doi: 10.2522/ptj.20130443. Epub 2014 Jun 5.
Lower levels of physical activity in children with developmental delay (DD) usually are attributed to higher energy costs. However, there is no evidence that children with DD spend more energy on daily physical activities, such as walking.
The aim of this study was to compare energy costs during walking and movement initiation times in children with DD and children with typical development (TD) and matched for age.
This was a case-control study.
Children who were 3 and 5 years old and had DD (n=12) or TD (n=12) participated in the study. Measurements included ranges of motion in the lower extremities, physiological costs of walking, and movement initiation times. A task designed to evaluate the initiation of movement (the "go play with the toy" task) was used to examine the reaction times for children's goal-directed walking.
The physiological costs of walking were similar in the 2 groups; however, children with DD walked at a lower speed than children with TD. Importantly, children with DD took more time to initiate goal-directed walking.
The nature of the study design limited causal inference from the results.
Children who were 3 to 5 years old and had DD had delays in goal-directed movement that may not have been attributable to motor impairments. The findings suggest that therapists should evaluate the movement initiation ability of 3- to 5-year-old children with DD as part of the design of an overall intervention plan.
发育迟缓（DD）儿童的身体活动水平较低通常归因于更高的能量消耗。然而，没有证据表明DD儿童在日常身体活动（如行走）上花费更多能量。
本研究的目的是比较DD儿童与年龄匹配的典型发育（TD）儿童在行走过程中的能量消耗和运动起始时间。
这是一项病例对照研究。
3岁和5岁的DD儿童（n = 12）或TD儿童（n = 12）参与了本研究。测量包括下肢活动范围、行走的生理消耗和运动起始时间。一项旨在评估运动起始的任务（“去玩玩具”任务）用于检查儿童目标导向行走的反应时间。
两组儿童行走的生理消耗相似；然而，DD儿童的行走速度低于TD儿童。重要的是，DD儿童开始目标导向行走的时间更长。
研究设计的性质限制了从结果中得出因果推断。
3至5岁的DD儿童在目标导向运动方面存在延迟，这可能并非归因于运动障碍。研究结果表明，治疗师应将评估3至5岁DD儿童的运动起始能力作为整体干预计划设计的一部分。
