The effectiveness of balance training program in improving the balance of children with down syndrome

Date of Completion

2018

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy

Keywords

Down Syndrome, Children with Disabilities, Postural Balance

Abstract

In this study, a quasi-experimental design was utilized by the researchers to answer the core question of the study: “Is the balance training program effective in improving the balance of children with Down syndrome in CRS pediatric satellite centers (Dr. Jose P. Rizal Elementary School and Imus Pilot School)?”. Prior to the administration of the balance training program, students from the two participating school, Imus Pilot Elementary School and Dr. Jose P. Rizal Elementary School, respectively were screened using an approved questionnaire by the licensed Physical Therapist hired for the study. The students were screened using the following criteria to be participants of the study: (a) children with Down syndrome ages 7-21 years old (b) can understand simple to complex instructions. On the other hand students were excluded to be participants of the study given that: (a) There is a presence of cardiopulmonary disorder and (b) If the student is currently receiving physical therapy intervention. After gathering five (5) students from each participating school who satisfactorily passed the study’s inclusion criteria, a pre-test was conducted by the licensed Physical Therapist to obtain a baseline of the current balance of both experimental and control group using the balance subtest of the Bruininks Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-2 (BOT-2). After obtaining the baseline, a balance training program was administered by the same licensed physical therapist to the experimental group for a span of 6 weeks, 3 times per week. A post-test was conducted after 6 weeks to both the experimental and control group using the same balance outcome measure. After six weeks, results showed that there is a significant difference between the pre-test and post-test of the experimental group. Percentage difference was obtained between the pre-test and post-test, and the Mann Whitney U test was utilized for the statistical computation of data gathered. Based on the result gathered in the study, the administered balance training program is effective in improving the balance of children with Down syndrome.

First Advisor

Mary Angelica V. Legaspi

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS