Abstract
Cerebral palsy (CP) is a condition marked by impaired muscle coordination and typically results from damage to the brain before or at birth. The prevalence of CP is approximately 500,000 children under the age of 18 years old. Children with CP may experience symptoms such as spasticity, rigidity, abnormal reflexes, variation in muscle tone, involuntary movements, and delays in typical development. Due to these noted symptoms, many children with CP consequently experience decreased participation in everyday occupations. Specifically, engagement in activities of daily living (ADLs), instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), play, school, and social participation are noted. One common intervention that children with CP receive is intramuscular (I.M.) botulinum toxin A (BTX-A) injections to normalize muscle tone and movement patterns. The purpose of this critical analysis was to determine the effectiveness of BTX-A injections in combination with occupation-based interventions to increase engagement in ADLs in children ages 5-18 with CP. The analysis concluded that the use of BTX-A injections in combination with occupational therapy and more specifically, occupation-based interventions, is effective in increasing engagement in ADL activities in children ages 5-18 years old with CP. According to the evidence, BTX-A injections in combination with occupational therapy interventions increased engagement in childhood activities due to decreased spasticity, improved hand functioning, and improvements in gross and fine motor skills. Treatment protocols and degree of functional impact varied among studies; Therefore, further research is necessary to formulate specific treatment regimens for most effective intervention.