Comparison of Participation of 4-6 Years-Old Children with Cerebral Palsy in Area of Occupations According to Gross Motor Function Level

  The aim of the present study was comparison of participation of 4-6 year-old children with cerebral palsy in area of occupations (self-care, home participation, play, leisure, social participation, and educational environments) according to gross motor function level. In the current cross-sectional study, samples were randomly selected and to the two assessment strategies were used for sampling include: Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) and Persian version of Children participation questionnaire version (CPQ-P). Data analysis was performed using SPSS software (V. 21) and independent t-tests were used to evaluate significant differences with the significance point set at 0.05. The mean age of CP children in the study was 5 (min. 4 and max. 6 years) and 39 were male (78%) and 11 female (22%). The difference between participation mean of CP children in areas of occupations (self-care, participation at home, play, social participation, and educational environments) and levels of gross motor function (GMF) (1st and 2nd level) was found to be significant (P<0.05). On the other hand, between participation mean of CP children in leisure area and levels of GMF no statistically significant difference was found (P> 0.05). It was also found that no significant difference exists between participation and GMF, according to diversity and intensity dimensions (P> 0.05), but a significant difference was observed in the other dimensions of participation, including assistance, enjoyment, and parents satisfaction (P<0.05). According to the results, our study indicated that participation of CP children in area of occupations according to GMF level was trivial and had no noticeable efficacy; thus, in the evaluation and treatment of CP children, it should be noted that children's participation in occupations as an ultimate goal of rehabilitation cannot be achieved only by putting emphasis on improvment and motor function