Evaluating the effect of intensive intervention in children with cerebral palsy using a hypothetical matched control group: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of intensive intervention in children with cerebral palsy using a hypothetical matched control group based on motor growth curves. DESIGN For pretest-posttest design using a hypothetical control group, a convenient sample of 39 children with cerebral palsy who received intensive intervention without surgical treatment was assigned to the experimental group. The hypothetical matched control group was created based on motor growth curves. Gains in Gross Motor Function Measure-66 score after intensive treatment in the experimental group were compared with scores in the hypothetical matched control group using a mixed design for repeated-measures two-way analysis of variance. RESULTS Gross motor function development in the experimental group was significantly accelerated compared with the hypothetical matched control group. CONCLUSIONS In this preliminary study, using a hypothetical control group, the effectiveness of intensive intervention in children with cerebral palsy has been demonstrated. Although it is desirable to have a baseline phase to make sure whether gross motor function in the hypothetical control group changes in a similar way to that in the experimental group before an intervention phase, the hypothetical control group design is well worth considering as a research design option in the field of cerebral palsy research.