Aim: To investigate whether more prominent signs of muscle fatigue occur during self-paced walking in children with cerebral palsy (CP) compared to typically developing peers.
Method: In this case-control study, 13 children with CP (four males, nine females; mean age [SD] 11y 4mo [3y 8mo]; nine in Gross Motor Function Classification System [GMFCS] level I, three in GMFCS level II, and one in GMFCS level III) and 14 typically developing peers (nine males, five females; mean age [SD] 9y 10mo [1y 10mo]) walked 5 minutes overground at a self-selected walking speed. Electromyography (EMG) median frequency and root mean square (RMS) were identified per gait cycle from EMG recordings of the tibialis anterior, gastrocnemius medialis, soleus, rectus femoris, and semitendinosus. Rate of change in those variables was analysed using mixed linear model analyses.
Results: The decrease in EMG median frequency of gastrocnemius medialis and soleus and increase in EMG-RMS of tibialis anterior, gastrocnemius medialis, and soleus were significantly larger in the most affected leg of children with CP compared with typically developing peers.
Interpretation: Increased selective muscle fatigue of the lower leg muscles was observed during self-paced walking in children with mild-to-moderate severe CP. This could contribute to and account for limited walking capacity.
What this paper adds: Children with cerebral palsy (CP) show more signs of lower leg muscle fatigue than typically developing peers. No signs of muscle fatigue were observed in upper leg muscles of children with CP.
Objetivo:
Investigar la ocurrencia de signos prominentes de fatiga muscular durante la marcha a ritmo propio, en niños con parálisis cerebral (
Mètodo:
En este estudio de caso control, 13 niños con
Resultados:
La disminución en la frecuencia media de la
Interpretación:
Se observó un aumento en la fatiga muscular selectiva en los músculos de la pierna durante la marcha a ritmo propio en niños con
Objetivo:
Investigar se sinais mais proeminentes de fadiga muscular ocorrem durante marcha com velocidade auto‐selecionada em crianças com paralisia cerebral (
Método:
Neste estudo caso‐controle, 13 crianças com
Resultados:
A redução da frequência mediana do gastrocnêmio medial e sóleo e o aumento na
Interpretação:
A fadiga aumentada e seletiva nos músculos dos membros inferiores foi observada durante a marcha em velocidade auto‐selecionada em crianças com
© 2018 The Authors Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Mac Keith Press.