Effects of Functional Electrical Stimulation on Gait in Cerebral Palsy

Several authors have reported functional and therapeutic benefits after the application of electrical stimulation to children with neurological disorders (1-3). A functional movement can be induced by electrical neuromuscular stimulation of the paralysed muscles with intact excitability of their peripheral innervation. A long-term use of electrical neuromuscular stimulation can strengthen the weak muscles, increases their endurance, improve the range of movement and reduce spasticity. The most widely used application of functional electrical stimulation (FES) is stimulation of the peroneal nerve and/or tibialis ant. muscle in adults and children with the foot drop due to chronic central nervous system lesions. However, the expected and desired beneficial effects of stimulation cannot be clearly predicted in individual patients with spastic hemiplegia or diplegia. There is still a lack of scientific data on short and long-term effects of electrical stimulation on abnormal movement patterns and abnormal muscle tone in children with cerebral palsy.