Effect of acupuncture and tuina plus rehabilitative therapy on lower limb motor dysfunction in infants with spastic cerebral palsy

Objective

To observe the effect of acupuncture, tuina plus rehabilitative therapy on lower limb motor dysfunction in infants with spastic cerebral palsy.

Methods

A total of 60 infants with spastic cerebral palsy were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group by random digital table, 30 cases in each group. The treatment group was treated with acupuncture, tuina therapy plus rehabilitative therapy of Western medicine. The control group was simply treated with rehabilitative therapy of Western medicine, as same as that for the treatment group. The assessment was respectively given to the sick infants before the treatment and after the treatment of six months, to evaluate lying and rolling scores in dimension A, to evaluate sitting score in dimension B, to evaluate crawling and kneeling scores in dimension C, and evaluate standing score in dimension D in the gross motor functions and determine the muscle tone of the gastrocnemius muscle by modified Ashworth scale (MAS).

Results

The differences were not statistically significant in comparison of the gross motor functions and the muscle tone of the gastrocnemius muscle between the two groups of sick infants before the treatment (P>0.05); after the treatment of six months, the above items were obviously improved in the two groups (P<0.01), better in the treatment group than in the control group, with the statistical significance in the differences between the groups (P<0.01).

Conclusion

Acupuncture, tuina plus rehabilitative therapy of Western medicine are remarkable in the therapeutic effects in the treatment of motor disorders of the lower limbs in the sick infants with spastic cerebral palsy. This therapeutic method is safe, simple and convenient and needs to be clinically popularized and applied.