Performance of Physical Activities by Adolescents With Cerebral Palsy

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Mobility and self-care are important considerations for successful transition of adolescents with cerebral palsy to adulthood. The purpose of this study was to characterize performance of physical activities from the perspective of adolescents themselves. SUBJECTS: The subjects were 156 adolescents with cerebral palsy, 11.6 to 17.7 years of age. METHODS: A therapist completed the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS). Adolescents completed the Activities Scale for Kids-Performance Version (ASKp) twice over a 1-year period. RESULTS: A repeated-measures analysis of variance indicated a main effect for GMFCS level. The main effect for time and the GMFCS level x time interaction were not significant. Post hoc comparisons indicated that ASKp scores differed among all GMFCS levels. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Performance of physical activities by adolescents with cerebral palsy differed based on GMFCS level and did not change over 1 year. The ASKp scores of adolescents in levels II through V suggest the need for physical assistance at times throughout the day. The results have implications for the role of the physical therapist in transition planning.