Comparison of the Effect of Corrective Playing in Land and Water on the Curvature Kyphosis and Shoulder Abduction in Boys With Intellectual Disability

Abstract Background & purpose: One of the most common skeletal deformities in children with intellectual disability is kyphosis. Kyphosis decreases the range of shoulder joint motion. This study aims to compare of the effect of eight-weeks corrective playing in land and water on the curvature kyphosis and shoulder joint range of motion in boys with intellectually disability. Materials and Methods: The present study was a quasi-experimental and applied research. Of the statistical population, 30  intellectually disabled children with the average age of 10/7 ± 1/4 years, height 141/7 ± 7/6 cm, weight 35/5 ± 4/8 kg and BMI 17/6 ± 0/7 were selected through purposeful and availability sampling and randomly divided into two groups, namely water and land groups. To measure the height, weight, kyphosis and the range of shoulder abduction stadiometer Seca, scales Seca, flexible ruler and the goniometer tools were used respectively. Participants practiced for 8 weeks, three days per week. Data were analyzed via SPSS 16. Leven test, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, dependent and independent t-test were used todetermine the homogeneity, normal distribution and the, changes within and between groups respectively. Results: The results showed that corrective playing in land and water, significantly improves the angle of kyphosis and increases shoulder abduction range of motion. Conclusion: The results indicate that because of the fun in corrective playing, we can use corrective playing to improve some skeletal abnormalities such as kyphosis and increased range of motion in children with intellectual disabilities.