Presentation Title
P-42 The effect of hippotherapy on hypertonicity and function as measured by the HAT scale (Hypertonia Assessment Tool) Modified Ashworth scale and TUG (Timed Up and Go) test
Presenter Status
Department of Physical Therapy
Second Presenter Status
Graduate Student, Department of Physical Therapy
Third Presenter Status
Graduate Student, Department of Physical Therapy
Fourth Presenter Status
Graduate Student, Department of Physical Therapy
Fifth Presenter Status
Graduate Student, Department of Physical Therapy
Location
Buller Hallway
Start Date
1-11-2013 1:30 PM
End Date
1-11-2013 3:00 PM
Presentation Abstract
Purpose: Hypertonia is an increase in the normal resting tone of the muscles resulting in rigidity and spasticity of the involved muscles making functional tasks such as walking, dressing, and activities of daily living, difficult to accomplish. Hippotherapy is the use of a horse to help with treatment goals and is used to treat hypertonia. There is currently not enough measurable evidence of it’s effectiveness. Research demonstrating the effectiveness of hippotherapy would establish this treatment as a viable option for the treatment of hypertonia and provide needed evidence for potential funding and resources for hippotherapy centers and its clients. The purpose of this study is to determine if hippotherapy is an effective treatment method for decreasing tone and improving gait speed in children and adolescents with hypertonia. Subjects: Thirty male or female adolescents between the ages of 4-19 years will be selected through purposive sampling. Methods: For each subject, a trained hippotherapy physical therapist will perform a baseline assessment to determine the presence of hypertonia utilizing the HAT scale. The Modified Ashworth scale will be used to quantify the degree of hypertonia present and the TUG test will be used to assess gait speed. The subject will then receive a 15-35 minute hippotherapy treatment and a post-assessment of the dependent variables will be done at 2-week intervals over an 8-week period.
P-42 The effect of hippotherapy on hypertonicity and function as measured by the HAT scale (Hypertonia Assessment Tool) Modified Ashworth scale and TUG (Timed Up and Go) test
Buller Hallway
Purpose: Hypertonia is an increase in the normal resting tone of the muscles resulting in rigidity and spasticity of the involved muscles making functional tasks such as walking, dressing, and activities of daily living, difficult to accomplish. Hippotherapy is the use of a horse to help with treatment goals and is used to treat hypertonia. There is currently not enough measurable evidence of it’s effectiveness. Research demonstrating the effectiveness of hippotherapy would establish this treatment as a viable option for the treatment of hypertonia and provide needed evidence for potential funding and resources for hippotherapy centers and its clients. The purpose of this study is to determine if hippotherapy is an effective treatment method for decreasing tone and improving gait speed in children and adolescents with hypertonia. Subjects: Thirty male or female adolescents between the ages of 4-19 years will be selected through purposive sampling. Methods: For each subject, a trained hippotherapy physical therapist will perform a baseline assessment to determine the presence of hypertonia utilizing the HAT scale. The Modified Ashworth scale will be used to quantify the degree of hypertonia present and the TUG test will be used to assess gait speed. The subject will then receive a 15-35 minute hippotherapy treatment and a post-assessment of the dependent variables will be done at 2-week intervals over an 8-week period.