Satiansukpong Nuntanee, Pongsaksri Maethisa, Sasat Daranee
Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Chiang Mai University, 110 Intawaroroj Rd., Sripoom, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand.
Occup Ther Int. 2016 Jun;23(2):121-31. doi: 10.1002/oti.1417. Epub 2016 Jan 4.
The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of the Thai Elephant-Assisted Therapy Programme for children with Down syndrome (DS) (TETP-D) on balance, postural control and visual motor integration (VMI). A quasi-experimental design with blind control was used. Sixteen children with DS from grades 1 to 6, in a Thailand, public school were recruited for this study. The participants were divided voluntarily into two groups: control and experimental. These both groups received regular school activities, but the experimental group had added treatment, which consisted of TETP-D twice a week for 2 months. The balance subtest of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency 2, the postural control record form and Beery VMI were applied as outcome measure 1 week before and after the TETP-D. The results showed no significant difference in balance or postural control. However, a significant difference of VMI was shown between the two groups (z = 13.5, p = .04). Children with DS benefited from the TETP-D as it improved their VMI. The TETP-D could improve balance and postural control if provided within a suitable frequency and duration. Further research is needed to test this hypothesis. The limitations of this study are the significant differences in some aspects of the groups at pre-test such as gender and supine flexion of postural control. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
本研究的目的是探讨泰国唐氏综合征儿童大象辅助治疗项目（TETP-D）对平衡能力、姿势控制和视觉运动整合（VMI）的影响。采用了带有盲法对照的准实验设计。本研究招募了泰国一所公立学校1至6年级的16名唐氏综合征儿童。参与者自愿分为两组：对照组和实验组。两组都接受常规学校活动，但实验组额外接受治疗，即每周两次TETP-D，为期2个月。在TETP-D前后1周，应用布吕尼inks-奥塞雷茨基运动能力测试2的平衡子测试、姿势控制记录表和贝利VMI作为结果测量指标。结果显示，在平衡能力或姿势控制方面没有显著差异。然而，两组之间的VMI存在显著差异（z = 13.5，p = 0.04）。唐氏综合征儿童从TETP-D中受益，因为它改善了他们的VMI。如果以合适的频率和持续时间提供TETP-D，可以改善平衡能力和姿势控制。需要进一步的研究来验证这一假设。本研究的局限性在于，在预测试时两组在某些方面存在显著差异，如性别和姿势控制的仰卧位屈曲。版权所有© 2015约翰·威利父子有限公司。
