Hyperbaric Oxygen or Pressurized Air for Children with Cerebral Palsy: No Difference
Date First Published:
July 9, 2002
Last Updated:
September 26, 2002
Report by:
David Jordan, Research Assistant (Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children)
Search checked by:
Lori Roxborough, Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children
Three-Part Question:
Is [hyperbaric oxygen treatment HBO] effective in [improving gross motor function] for [children with cerebral palsy]?
Clinical Scenario:
Parents of a 6 year old with cerebral palsy want to know if hyperbaric oxygen will be an effective treatment for their child's gross motor problems
Search Strategy:
Medline 1966-06/2002, Cinahl 1982-present, Biosys 1969-present using the OVID interface
Search Details:
([exp hyperbaric oxygen.mp.) AND [exp cerebral palsy.mp.])
Outcome:
Medline - 12 hits, Cinahl - 2, Biosys - 4. 12 unique references. 3 are irrelevant, 6 are letters, 1 is a case study and 1 is a pilot for the tabulated paper.
Relevant Paper(s):
| Study Title | Patient Group | Study type (level of evidence) | Outcomes | Key results | Study Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyperbaric oxygen for children with cerebral palsy: a randomised multicentre trial. Collet JP, Vanasse M, Marois P, Amar M, Goldberg J, Lambert J, Lassonde M, Hardy P, Fortin J, Tremblay SD, Montgomery D, Lacroix J, Robinson A, Majnemer A and the HBO-CP Research Group. 2001 Canada | 111 3-12 yr olds with cerebral palsy, randomly assigned to receive 40 treatments of HBO or slightly pressurised air | RCT | Main: gross motor function measured by Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) | No difference | Actual sample size was slightly smaller (107) than calculated (126) to declare a true difference between groups with a GMFM score differential of 3%. However, this did not alter the findings. There was a difference in the dropout rate between groups (3 from HBO and 1 from pressurised air) |
| Secondary: activities of daily living, attention, working, memory, speech | No difference |
Author Commentary:
One clinical trial identified, many anecdotal reports. Improvement in both groups may be related to parent motivation and the associated attention received by children.
Bottom Line:
Currently, there is no evidence to show greater improvements in gross motor function for children with cerebral palsy receiving HBO than for children receiving a sham treatment of slightly pressurised air.
References:
- Collet JP, Vanasse M, Marois P, Amar M, Goldberg J, Lambert J, Lassonde M, Hardy P, Fortin J, Tremblay SD, Montgomery D, Lacroix J, Robinson A, Majnemer A and the HBO-CP Research Group.. Hyperbaric oxygen for children with cerebral palsy: a randomised multicentre trial.
- Russell D, Rosenbaum P, Gowland C et al.. Gross Motor Function Measure Manual.