Gay L. Girolami

• PT, PhD
• Director of Professional Education at University of Illinois Chicago

Introduction Play is a way for children to develop and learn about themselves in conjunction with the world. Using play as part of pediatric physical therapy is broadly recommended. This study investigates this integration of play and seeks to answer the research question: How do pediatric physical therapists (PPT) understand and manage embedding p...

Background The correlation between the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS) and the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales-2 (PDMS-2) has not previously been assessed in Norwegian infants. Our purpose was to investigate the concurrent validity of the AIMS and the PDMS-2 in a group of high-risk infants, and to investigate the predictive validity of the two...

Objective. The aims of this scoping review are to examine the available literature regarding dual tasking in children with cerebral palsy (CP) and to identify and categorize both the motor and cognitive tasks and outcome measures used primarily through the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health model. Methods. Five elect...

Theories of motor control and skill acquisition strongly influence and guide various fields of clinical practice. In last decades, changes in theoretical frameworks related to the conceptualization of brain plasticity, functional structures within the child, and environment have led to a revision of therapy approaches progressing from therapist-dri...

Early intervention programs involving both the parent and the infant born preterm have demonstrated positive effects on developmental outcomes for the children. However, studies have also shown that parental engagement and adherence when implementing intervention programs can be challenging. The aim of this review was to provide a comprehensive des...

This prospective study has two aims. The first aim is to assess the concurrent validity of the Eating and Drinking Ability Classification System (EDACS) as a means of identifying aspiration risk in children with cerebral palsy by using the Pediatric version of the Eating Assessment Tool (PEDI‐EAT‐10) as the reference test. The second aim is to inve...

Introduction: In pediatric physical therapy, there is an ongoing debate about the use of therapeutic handling and its potential effects on motor learning. In this study, we build on enactive theoretical perspectives to explore the role of therapeutic handling in connection to children's sensory-motor play, engagement, and performance during a singl...

Background Interventions involving both the parent and the preterm infant have demonstrated lasting effects on cognitive outcomes, but motor effects are less salient. It remains unclear when to commence early intervention and if dosages have impact on motor outcomes. Aims To examine the effect on motor performance at 24-months corrected age follow...

Idiopathic toe-walking (ITW) refers to persistent walking without heel contact for unknown reasons. An underexplored area is the relationship of sensory processing to ITW. This study presents methods to assess sensory differences in individuals with ITW and summarizes results from a pilot testing of the measures. This pilot study included nine chil...

Change in theoretical framework over the last decades and recent research in pediatric physiotherapy, has created a debate surrounding therapeutic touch. What is the role of or is there a need for handling and hands-on facilitated guidance (facilitation)? Does it limit and/or interfere with children's learning and development? It is frequently argu...

Background: Assessing the functional level of children with severe cerebral palsy (CP) requires sensitive tools. In this study, an 'assessment tool' was developed based on the Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP) for this population and the reliability and validity evaluated. Methods: Five physical therapists administered the 'assessment tool...

Research Objectives Objectives: SARA is a clinical tool designed to assess concerns of aspiration during the pharyngeal phase of swallowing. The study was implemented to assess the intra-rater and inter-rater reliability of the scale in children with cerebral palsy (CP). We were also able to demonstrate the feasibility of scoring from videorecorded...

Background: Despite the risk of delayed motor development in infants born preterm, knowledge about interventions in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and the effects of dosing is sparse. Objective: The objectives of this study were to examine the effectiveness of a parent-administered exercise program in the NICU on motor outcome at 3 mont...

Hypothesis: neuromotor development correlates to body composition over the first year of life in prematurely born infants and can be influenced by enhancing motor activity. Forty-six female and 53 male infants [27 ± 1.8 (sd) weeks] randomized to comparison or exercise group (caregiver provided 15–20 min daily of developmentally appropriate motor ac...

Walking ability is one of the primary components of human motor function, and interventions aimed at improving walking ability are common in physical therapy, particularly in children. One element encountered in a participatory, or natural, environment is unpredictability, defined as the presence of an unexpected obstacle, stimulus, or alteration o...

Background: Giving birth prematurely challenges bonding, optimal parent-child interactions and parental confidence in the early care of their preterm infants. In this study we explored the short-term impact of a parent administered motor intervention programme on parents’ perception of competency and relationship building with their preterm infant....

Demand for physical therapists in the United States (U.S.) is currently robust and expected to grow further. There are currently 228 physical therapy programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and 30 more are in development in the U.S.; 29,246 students are currently enrolled in these programs (2014...

Objective To systematically review the evidence on the effect of constraint-induced movement therapy compared with bimanual intensive training in children with unilateral cerebral palsy. Data sources Seven electronic databases (Cinahl, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Ovid MEDLINE, PEDro, PsycINFO, PubMed) were searched from database inception through De...

Anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) in preparation for predictable externally induced loading perturbation were studied in children with typically development (TD), hemiplegic (HEMI), and diplegic (DIPL) cerebral palsy. Twenty-seven children (n = 9 in each group) were asked to stand and catch a load dropped from a pre-specified height. Electri...

Objective: To investigate the short-term effect of parent-administered physical therapy in the preterm period on motor performance in medically stable infants. Methods: This study was a pragmatic, multicenter, randomized controlled trial including 153 infants born at gestational age ≤32 weeks and randomized to an intervention (n = 74) or a contr...

Objective: To examine test-retest reliability of the TIMPSI in infants at risk for impaired functional motor performance. Methods: The TIMPSI was administered twice to 51 infants from two different hospitals in Norway. Results: The intra-class correlation coefficient was 0.99. Conclusion: Test-retest reliability of the TIMPSI was excellent.

Knowledge about early physiotherapy to preterm infants is sparse, given the risk of delayed motor development and cerebral palsy. A pragmatic randomized controlled study has been designed to assess the effect of a preventative physiotherapy program carried out in the neonatal intensive care unit. Moreover, a qualitative study is carried out to asse...

Objective: This pilot study aimed to examine a classical ballet program created for children with cerebral palsy (CP) as an emerging physical rehabilitation modality. The main program goals were to promote participation and to provide an artistic, physically therapeutic activity. Methods: The study was conducted in collaboration with a tertiary reh...

Anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) play an important role in the performance of many activities requiring the maintenance of standing posture. However, little is known about if and how children with cerebral palsy (CP) generate APAs. Two groups of children with CP (hemiplegia and diplegia) and a group of children with typical motor developmen...

The American Physical Therapy Association Section on Pediatrics developed a task force to summarize fitness guidelines for children and adolescents. The purposes of this article were to review components, measurement methods, and consequences of physical fitness, and to summarize evidence-based activity recommendations for youth. Health-related fit...

Anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) play an important role in the performance of many activities requiring the maintenance of vertical posture. However, little is known about how children utilize APAs during self-induced postural perturbations. A group of children, aged 7-16 years, with typical motor development, performed various arm movement...

This CD-ROM is a new, enhanced version of a program for learning to administer and score the Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP), an assessment of movement skills in infants from 34 weeks post-menstrual age through 4 months past term. The TIMP has been normed on a U.S. population-based sample of 990 infants. Research has documented the test's p...

The purpose of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Short Child Occupational Profile (SCOPE; version 2.0). The SCOPE is an occupation focused, client-centered, theory driven assessment developed out of a practice/academic partnership. In this study, twenty practitioners from occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech th...

This case report describes an 11-year-old boy with spastic diplegia whose reflex status, range of motion (ROM), strength, and motor performance were measured before and after implantation of an indwelling system for delivery of intrathecally administered baclofen. Before baclofen use, the subject experienced clonus that interfered with walking, nee...

The purpose of this study was to assess the construct validity of the Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP), specifically the test's sensitivity for assessing age-related changes in motor skill and correlation with risk for developmental abnormality. Subjects were 137 term and preterm infants stratified by postconceptional age, medical complicati...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a Neuro-Developmental Treatment protocol designed to improve motor control in infants born prematurely and at high risk for developmental disability. In a randomized, controlled clinical trial, a treatment group (n = 9) received the Neuro-Developmental Treatment-based intervention protocol,...