title: Qigong massage for motor skills in young children with cerebral palsy and Down syndrome.
abstract: In this article, we present a small randomized controlled study evaluating the effect of a dual parent- and trainer-delivered qigong massage methodology on motor skills and sensory responses in 28 children under age 4 with developmental delay and motor tone abnormalities. Fourteen children had high motor tone as a result of cerebral palsy (CP), and 14 children had low motor tone as a result of Down syndrome. Multivariate analysis and post hoc analysis of variance showed large effect-size improvements in Peabody Gross Motor Scale (PGMS) Object Manipulation scores (p < .01) and large effect-size improvements in overall PGMS scores (p < .04) in treatment versus control groups after 5 mo intervention. Follow-up evaluation 10 mo from the start indicated continued improvement. Sensory responses showed no treatment effect. The results suggest further investigation of qigong massage as a promising avenue for research to improve motor skills in young children with CP and Down syndrome.
authors.affiliation: Teaching Research Institute, Western Oregon University, PO Box 688, Salem, OR 97308, USA. lmtsilvaqigong@comcast.net
authors.forename: Louisa M T
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schalock
authors.forename: Jodi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Garberg
authors.forename: Cynthia Lammers
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000534:rehabilitation; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000534:rehabilitation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008405:Massage; D009048:Motor Skills; D064906:Qigong; D016896:Treatment Outcome