The Impact of Motor Function of Children with Cerebral Palsy on Mother's Health Status

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of motor function of children with cerebral palsy on mother’s physical and mental health status.

In this analytic cross-sectional study, 135 mothers of children with cerebral palsy living in Tehran participated through a convenience sampling method. Health status of mothers was assessed using the Short Form of health survey-36 (SF-36) Questionnaire. The gross motor function and manual ability of children with cerebral palsy were assessed using the Gross Motor Function Classification system (GMFCS) and manual ability classification system (MACS), respectively. Data were statistically analyzed using ANOVA test and descriptive statistics using SPSS software version 16.

The results of ANOVA test demonstrated that there was a significant association between health status of mothers and GMFCS (P=0.001) and MACS level (P=0.000). However, there was no significant relationship with mother's mental health (P>0.05).

This study provided evidence of the poorer physical health status of caregivers of children with severe cerebral palsy.