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Cerebral Palsy

Duncan et al aimed to assess the effectiveness of cranial osteopathy, myofascial release, or both versus acupuncture in 55 children with moderate to severe spastic cerebral palsy (CP). Fifteen children received 10 sessions of OMT, 18 had 30 sessions of acupuncture, and 22 were in the wait-list control arm. After a 24-week period, the authors reported no significant changes in Gross Motor Function Classification System (no P values, no confidence intervals [CIs]), Functional Independence Measure for Children/ self care (no P values, no CIs), and Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory/mobility (no P values, no CIs); and significant improvements in the total Gross Motor Function Measure-ment (GMFM) score (P , .05, no CIs) and in the mobility domain of the Functional Independence Measure for Children (P , .05, no CIs) in the OMT group compared with acupuncture or waiting list controls and concluded that OMT improved motor function in children with moderate to severe spastic CP. Steele et al aimed to describe a re-search protocol for studying the efficacy of OMT on middle ear effusion after an episode of acute OM in 56 young children. Seven subjects received 5 sessions of OMT plus UC over 30 days, and 27 received UC (antibiotics and sur-gery). The authors did not report any between-group comparisons and concluded that the OMT protocol can be administered with no serious AEs. Wahl et al aimed to assess the efficacy of Echinacea purpurea and/or OMT for the prevention of acute OM in otitis-prone children. Of the 90 children in the study, 46 received 5 sessions of OMT plus either real or placebo Echinacea, and 44 received sham OMT (palpation of the cranial bones and muscles and other structures) plus either real or placebo Echinacea over 3 months. The authors reported no significant between-group differences in risk of having at least 1 episode of acute OM (relative risk = 0.72 [95% CI: 0.48 to 1.10], P . .05) and concluded that a regimen of up to 5 OMTs does not significantly decrease the risk of acute OM. Hasler et al20 tested the effect of OMT on trunk morphology and spine flexibility in 20 adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis (IS); 10 received 3 sessions of OMT over 5 weeks, and 10 had no intervention. The authors reported no significant between-group differences in trunk morphology (P = .44, no CIs) and spinal flexibility (P = .43, no CIs) and concluded that there was no evidence to support OMT as an effective treatment of mild adolescent IS.

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