Pediatric Physical and Occupational Therapy
Toys and Technology for Rehabilitation
Toys and Technology for Rehabilitation is a clinical research project with the goal of improving arm function in children with cerebral palsy. Through playing with a toy that also provides therapy, we hope your child will have fun while improving his or her affected arm and hand.
The initial goal of the study was to design toys that promote the use of the disabled arm and hand that can be used in a home and community setting. We are now studying these toys to see if they improve the outcome of the usual rehabilitation therapy.
- How do the toys work?
We have designed hand-held toy devices to act as controllers for activities including slot-car racing and remote controlled cars. These devices have sensors in them that can record how much the toys are used, and we will then use this information to gain a better understanding of the toy’s potential as a rehabilitation tool.
- Who can participate?
Children ages 5 to 12 with cerebral palsy are weakness involving one side of the body and who are able to follow instructions.
- What happens during the study?
A child who participates will be given a rehabilitation toy to be used in the home. It will take about 1 year to complete the study, and you will come to the pediatric rehabilitation clinic for hourly meetings once a month throughout the year. We will evaluate his or her progress and we will use standard tests for motor performance along with a device similar to a computer joystick for a video game to help provide accurate measurements of hand and arm motions.
- Who cannot participate?
Children with visual or cognitive impairment or poorly-controlled seizures.
Contact us
- For more information about the study, contact study coordinator Rosalynn Su at 401-872-8049 or email rosalynn_su@brown.edu.
- For questions on the clinical aspects, contact Karen Kerman, MD at 401-432-6800
- For questions about the toys, contact Trey Crisco, MD at 401-444-4231
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