Gross Motor Function
A pre-post study (McGibbon et al, 2009) examining the long-term effects of a 12-week hippotherapy program on 6 children with cerebral palsy demonstrated a trend towards increased scores on the GMFM-66 as compared to baseline that were sustained for 12 weeks post-treatment.
Another pre-post study (Chang et al, 2012) examined the effects of hippotherapy on 33 preschool-aged and school-aged children with cerebral palsy on gross motor function using the GMFM and Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS). It was found that the GMFM and PBS scores of children with CP improved significantly after hippotherapy (p<0.01 for PBS). Specifically, dimensions D and E of the GMFM were significantly increased after hippotherapy compared with the pre-riding period (p=0.029, 0.027).
A pre-post study (Kwon et al, 2011) evaluated the effects of hippotherapy on gross motor function in children with cerebral palsy using the GMFM-88 and the Pediatric Balance Scale. A statistically significant improvement was found for the scores of the walking/running/jumping dimension on the GMFM-88 (p=0.042), GMFM-66 (p=0.003) and the Pediatric Balance Scale (p=0.004).
Two systematic reviews (Sterba et al, 2007; Whalen et al, 2012) demonstrates that the current literature on hippotherapy is limited however that it has a positive impact on gross motor function in children with cerebral palsy.
Conclusion: There is limited evidence (level 2b) from 3 pre-post studies that hippotherapy has a positive effect on gross motor function in children with cerebral palsy.
Self-care
A literature review (Snider et al, 2007) concluded that there is limited evidence demonstrating a trend towards positive effects of hippotherapy on self-care outcomes as measured by the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Index.
Conclusion: There is limited (level 2b) evidence regarding the positive effects of hippotherapy on self-care skills for children with cerebral palsy.
