2012 Participants
Ka Chun Tse
Hemiplegic cerebral palsy, affecting 12,000 UK children, is weakness and stiffness in one side of the body due to injury to the developing brain. Use of the affected hand can be severely limited, restricting independence. Perhaps surprisingly, the "unaffected" hand is also mildly impaired. Difficulties in planning (not just executing) movements compound the problem. We developed and evaluated in adults a tool for assessing such difficulties. We intend to obtain normative data in children so in future we can assess motor planning difficulties in children with hemiplegia. This is an essential step in order to evaluate future therapies.
Funding source: Newcastle University