Effect of Intensive Physiotherapy Training for Children With Congenital Zika Syndrome: A Retrospective Cohort Study

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the effect of intensive physiotherapy training on the motor function of children with congenital Zika syndrome (CZS).

Design: A retrospective cohort study.

Setting: A support center for children with microcephaly.

Participants: Children (N=7) aged 14 to 18 months old who were diagnosed with CZS and previously monitored more than 1 year.

Interventions: A 2-stage protocol repeated uninterruptedly for 1 year. In the first stage, the children were submitted to 1 hour of conventional physiotherapy and 1 hour of suit therapy 5 times a week for 4 weeks. The second stage consisted of 1 hour of suit therapy 3 times a week for 2 weeks.

Main outcome measures: Gross motor function measure (GMFM) and body weight.

Results: Six evaluations were conducted approximately 3 months apart. An increase in the overall GMFM score was observed between the first and second (P=.046), first and third (P=.018), first and fourth (P=.018), first and fifth (P=.043), and first and sixth evaluations (P=.018). Differences in the scores of the individual GMFM dimensions were found only for dimension A (lying and rolling) between the first and fourth evaluations (P=.027) and for dimension B (sitting) between the first and third (P=.018), first and fourth (P=.046), and first and sixth evaluations (P=.027). No difference was found in body weight between the first and sixth evaluations (P=.009). During follow-up, only 1 child required hospitalization, and another had increased irritability.

Conclusions: Children with CZS were able to perform 2 hours of motor physiotherapy daily with no serious complications, resulting in an increase or stabilization in GMFM scores.

Keywords: Motor activity and motor skills disorders; Rehabilitation; Zika virus infection.