• Shamekh Mohamed El-Shamy.
• From the Department of Physical Therapy for Disturbance of Growth and Development in Children and its Surgery, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt.
• Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017 Nov 1; 96 (11): 809-815.

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of antigravity treadmill training on gait, balance, and fall risk in children with diplegic cerebral palsy.DesignThirty children with diplegic cerebral palsy were selected for this randomized controlled study. They were randomly assigned to (1) an experimental group that received antigravity treadmill training (20 mins/d, 3 d/wk) together with traditional physical therapy for 3 successive mos and (2) a control group that received only traditional physical therapy program for the same period. Outcomes included selected gait parameters, postural stability, and fall risk. Outcomes were measured at baseline and after 3 mos of intervention.ResultsChildren in both groups showed significant improvements in the mean values of all measured variables (P < 0.05), with significantly greater improvements in the experimental group than the control group. The posttreatment gait parameters (i.e., velocity, stride length, cadence, and percent of time spent in double-limb support) were 0.74 m/sec, 119 steps/min, 0.75 m/sec, 0.65 sec, and 55.9% as well as 0.5 m, 125 steps/min, 0.6 m/sec, 0.49 sec, and 50.4% for the experimental and control group, respectively.ConclusionsAntigravity treadmill training may be a useful tool for improving gait parameters, balance, and fall risk in children with diplegic cerebral palsy.

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