Cerebral palsy describes a group of permanent disorders of the development of movement and posture, causing activity limitation that are attributed to non-progressive disturbances that occurred in the developing fetal or infant brain.
Nowadays, CP is not fully curable, and physiotherapy should be used in conjunction with other interventions such as oral drugs, botulinum toxin type A, continuous pump-administered intrathecal baclofen, orthopaedic surgery and selective dorsal rhizotomy. However, several systematic reviews conclude that there is low evidence that these invasive therapies are more effective than placebo.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a type of neuromodulatory technique through magnetic impulses. The effect of rTMS depends on the frequency of the emitted electromagnetic field; low frequencies (≤1 Hz) lead to an inhibition of neuronal electrical activity at the stimulation site, while high frequencies (≥3 Hz) cause neuronal depolarization.
The objective of the project is to evaluate the effectiveness of a repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) protocol, as an adjunct treatment to neurorehabilitation to improve gross motor function and quality of life in school-age children with spastic diplegia-type infantile cerebral palsy.
Primary school children with diagnose of Spastic Diplegia CP
> 1 on Mas in hip flexors, adductors and tibialis anterior of both lower extremities.
Parents/legal guardians signed the Informed consent
Severe mental retardation
Present epilepsy
Present any remedial surgery/medication
Less than 1 year post orthopaedic surgery