It is well known the beneficial effect that hippotherapy, or equestrian rehabilitation, has not only on neuromotor and cognitive disorders, but also in re-educating posture. But how does the activity of the most involved pelvic postural muscles change in Cerebral Palsy?
This clinical question is answered by the study conducted at the Equiphoria Institute (Combo Besso-Rouges Parets, France) and published in Brain Sciences, the aim of which was to evaluate the short and medium term effects on postural control in people with Cerebral Palsy during equestrian rehabilitation. In particular, by means of our surface electromyograph FREEEMG, the myoelectric activity of two key muscles on postural control in the sitting position (e.g. rectus abdomen and adductor) was analyzed.
The present study highlights the relationship between muscle contractile alteration and patient’s performance, supporting the design of neuro-rehabilitation programs aimed at improving posture according to the specific need of each patient. The performed electromyographic analysis confirms previous scientific evidences that emphasize that hippotherapy could be an effective approach in neurorehabilitation for people with Cerebral Palsy.
We thank the team of researchers from the Equiphoria Institute for sharing with us this interesting contribution regarding neuro-rehabilitation and applications of movement analysis in the clinic.
