No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This study explores the coping mechanisms of mothers caring for adolescent children with cerebral palsy. This study attempted to address a gap in the literature pertaining to understanding negative and positive ways of coping related to mothers and the specific pr oblems they have to deal with when caring for adolescents with cerebral palsy . The qualitative study foc uses on experiences and feelings directly obtained from mothers and it looked at what coping mechanisms benefit mothers whilst they are caring for their adolescent child with cerebral p alsy, what factors could compromise the mother’s coping style and how adolescence impacts on the mother’s ways of coping. The research revealed that mothers tended to use either emotion - focused ways of coping which was more maladaptive, or problem - focused ways of coping which were more adaptive ways of coping. A number of coping mechanisms were identified which appeared to benefit mothers, some of these include obtaining support from the medical profession as well as obtaining so cial support. The findings illustrated that there were particular ‘poor’ facilitative factors that could compromise the mothers coping style. Facilitative factors either influenced mothers to use more problem - focused ways of coping or more emotion - focused ways of coping. It was found that both these ways of coping were link ed to different defenc e mechan isms. This study found that adolescence placed more stress on the mother since new issues relating to adolescence emerged and had to be managed. The implications of these findings for management and care of mothers in these situations are discussed. It i s hoped that the present findings will contribute to assisting clinicians in being able to focus on the important areas when working in this field. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

Objectives: To describe the 'activities and participation' of children with cerebral palsy, as defined by the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), using family-assessed instruments. Methods: A structured review of family assessed instruments appropriate for measuring children's activities and participation was undertaken to identify questionnaires for use in a postal survey. The survey involved a geographically-defined population of children with cerebral palsy between 6 and 12 years old, identified from the 4Child database in Oxford. Indices of children's 'activities and participation' were families' assessment of the Gross Motor Function (GMFCS) and Manual Ability (MACS) Classification Systems, the Activities Scale for Kids (ASK) and Lifestyle Assessment Questionnaire (LAQ-CP). To determine the reliability of families' assessments their classifications of the GMFCS and MACS were compared to ratings made professionals; the response frequencies and internal consistency of the ASK and LAQ-CP scales were also examined. Details of children's impairments and abilities were then used as explanatory variables in multiple regression analyses to identify the effect of disability on children's activities and participation. Results: Families of 129/314 (41%) of the children fully participated in the survey and 175/314 (56%) provided a classification using the GMFCS. These children did not differ from children who did not take part by age, gender or characteristics of their cerebral palsy and associated impairments. Although there was not always perfect agreement the families' classifications of children's movement and manual abilities using the GMFCS and MACS were highly reliable compared to those of health professionals (ICC>0.9). Analysis of the ASK and LAQ-CP showed these also to be reliable. Scores for the ASK and LAQ-CP were generally best predicted by children movement, manual and intellectual disability. Conclusions: Family assessment of children's movement and manual abilities using the GMFCS and MACS was highly reliable compared to health professionals. In concordance with similar studies that used professionally-assessed measures, children's activities and participation were most adversely affected by movement, manual and intellectual disabilities. Family assessment offers a highly reliable method for measuring activities and participation; however currently available instruments do not fully represent all the domains in the ICF.

[Truncated abstract] Cerebral palsy is the most common physical disability in childhood (Reddihough & Collins, 2003). The most characteristic features of those with cerebral palsy are the physical disabilities that arise as a result of the brain lesion, including; spasticity, muscle weakness and atrophy, soft-tissue contracture and joint deformity. Strength training for young people with cerebral palsy aims to negate the debilitating effects of muscle weakness and improve function. Research need now be dedicated to investigating the mechanisms of strength-training, in an effort to optimise training routines and the prescription of strengthening protocols. The principal goal of the present research was to investigate the impact of eccentric strength training. A novel eccentrically based exercise intervention for the upper limb was implemented to ascertain the benefits on: (i) isokinetic torque development, (ii) the length-tension relationship of muscle (iii) EMG activity, (iv) 3D movement kinematics and (v) psychosocial benefits for children and their families. The analysis of changes in movement kinematics required the development of a reliable and repeatable upper limb 3D biomechanical model for clinical use, constituting chapter three of this thesis. ... This paper advocates the inclusion of measures of work/bodymass and width of the torque-angle relationship as important determinates of the functional integrity of muscle, and the use of EMG activation patterns to characterise neuromuscular mechanisms of training induced changes. The sixth paper aims to determine the effects of the eccentric training programme on upper limb 3D kinematics during functional tasks and to determine if these improvements were also evident on the Melbourne Assessment. Little change was evident in upper arm kinematics following the short-term eccentric training programme, however there was evidence in support of a decrease in compensatory movements at the thorax. The Melbourne Assessment failed to detect any significant changes in performance of functional upper limb tasks following the training programme. The results suggest that 3D kinematic analysis of upper body movement is a sensitive tool for the assessment of interventions for pathological populations. The aim of the seventh paper presented within this body of work was to ascertain the psychosocial outcomes for children with cerebral palsy and their families following the eccentric training programme. This study identified four main themes in the parent and participant responses to the programme; changes in physical health, psychosocial health, changes in activity and participation, and the impact of the psychosocial health of the child on the family were important to participants and their families. This paper reinforces the multi-dimensional nature of the benefits of strength-training, and advocates the assessment of interventions from perspective of the ICF (WHO, 2001). This work has established the reliability of an upper limb 3D biomechanical model for clinical use, and determined the neuromuscular, kinematic, functional and psychosocial outcomes of an upper limb eccentric training programme for adolescents with cerebral palsy and their families.

Thesis (M.Ed.) -- Memorial University of Newfoundland. 1974. / Typescript. Bibliography : leaves 97-105. Also available online.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Australia, 2007.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Queensland, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.