Cochrane · systematic review · CD013114
Mechanically assisted walking training for walking, participation, and quality of life in children with cerebral palsy
Chiu, H-C, Ada, L, Bania, TA · Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews · 2020 · Cochrane Library
Developmental, Psychosocial and Learning ProblemsAMSTAR 2: not assessed
SoF tableOnly the outcomes this review put in its Summary of Findings table are listed (the Cochrane Handbook caps them at about seven per comparison). Its other analyses are not shown here.
Questions
20
current version
GRADE rated
14
No studies
6
Included studies
NR
No studies 6 · 30%Ungraded 0 · 0%Very low 0 · 0%Low 8 · 40%Moderate 6 · 30%High 0 · 0%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Questions and results
Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support versus no walking training for cerebral palsy
Population: children with cerebral palsy classified within GMFCS Levels I to III between 5 and 19 years of age
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Mobility Measured by: walking speed on a Biodex Gait Trainer 2™ (average speed over 3 × 3 minutes, reported in m/s) Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 10 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Gross motor function Measured by: PDMS‐2‐locomotion (higher score = greater performance, reported as score) or mTUG (higher score = greater performance, reported in ‐seconds) Timing of outcome assessment: postintervention scores at 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 60 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Adverse events Measured by: no official measure; instead events are reported from observation Timing of outcome assessment: postintervention reports at 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 30 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Participation (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Quality of life (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support versus the same dose of overground walking training for cerebral palsy
Population: children with cerebral palsy classified within GMFCS Levels I to III and between 3 and 12 years of age
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Mobility Measured by: 6‐minute walk test or gait analysis via Vicon, reported in m/s Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 6 weeks or postintervention scores at 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 55 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Gross motor function Measured by: GMFM‐E (higher score = greater performance), reported as % Timing of outcome assessment: change from baseline to 6 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 35 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Adverse events (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Participation Measured by: PEDI‐mobility score (total scores range from 0 to 59; higher scores = greater participation) Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 6 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 35 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Quality of life (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training without body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support versus no walking training for cerebral palsy
Population: children with cerebral palsy classified within GMFCS Levels I to V and between 3 and 18 years of age
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Mobility Measured by: 10‐meter walk test or 8‐meter walk test (walking speed over a short distance; greater speed = greater functional mobility), reported in m/s Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 2 to 12 weeks or postint... Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 7 studies · 161 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Gross motor function Measured by: GMFM‐E (higher score = greater performance), reported as % Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 4 to 12 weeks or postintervention scores at 4 to 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 58 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Adverse events Measured by: no official measure; instead events are reported from observation Timing of outcome assessment: postintervention reports at 2 to 6 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 56 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Participation Measured by: CAPE‐intensity score or WeeFIM score; higher scores = greater participation Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 2 to 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 44 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias |
Quality of life Measured by: PedsQOL‐CP score (range from 0 to 100; higher scores = better quality of life) Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 12 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs no walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 26 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias |
Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support versus the same dose of overground walking training for cerebral palsy
Population: children with cerebral palsy classified within GMFCS Levels I to IV and between 4 and 18 years of age
| Outcome | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Mobility Measured by: 10‐meter walk test (walking speed over a short distance; greater speed = greater functional mobility) or 6‐minute walk test (distance in meters walked in 6 minutes; greater distance = greater endurance), reported in m/s Timin... Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 78 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Gross motor function Measured by: GMFM‐E (higher score = greater performance), reported as % Timing of outcome assessment: postintervention scores at 8 to 10 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 52 participants | Low Downgraded: risk of bias, imprecision |
Adverse events (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |
Participation Measured by: SFA score (total scores range from 19 to 76; higher scores = greater participation) Timing of outcome assessment: change scores from baseline to 10 weeks Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 26 participants | Moderate Downgraded: imprecision |
Quality of life (not measured) Mechanically assisted walking training with body weight support vs the same dose of overground walking training | no estimate extracted | NR | No studies |