Effect of Whole Body Vibration versus Suspension Therapy on Balance and Functional Capacity in Children with Diplegic Cerebral Palsy

Objectives: To compare the effects of whole body vibration with suspension therapy in relation to balance and functional capacity in diplegic cerebral palsied children. Subjects and methods: Thirty diplegic cerebral palsied children of both sexes were enrolled in the study with their ages ranged between 7 and 9 years. They were randomly and equally distributed into two study groups. The first group underwent the whole body vibration training and second group underwent suspension therapy through the spider cage. Also, both groups received the same designed physical therapy program. Stability indices and functional capacity were evaluated by using 6-minute walk test and Biodex stability system respectively before and after six successive months of treatment. Results: significant differences were obtained when comparing the pre and post treatment results of all measuring variables of both groups showed (P <0.05) except non-significant differences in medio-lateral stability index (P >0.05) in group I. Also, the results showed that the group underwent the suspension had more effect in comparison to the group of whole body vibration. Conclusion: Whole body vibration and suspension therapy training are effective additional tools in rehabilitation of diplegic cerebral palsied children with decreased balance and functional capacity in favor of the suspension therapy.