Nothing About Us Without Us
Developing Innovative Technologies
For , By and With Disabled Persons
Part One
THE PURPOSE OF SPECIAL SEATING:
Freedom and Development, Not Confinement
CHAPTER 5
A Tire Seat to Reduce Celia's Spasticity
CELIA, who has cerebral palsy and developmental delay, was brought to PROJIMO in a specially adapted buggy, or stroller, prescribed by a rehabilitation specialist. But there were problems with how she sat. Although a chest band held her more or less upright, she frequently went into a spastic pattern. Her head and shoulders pressed backward, her arms extended widely, and her legs stiffened in an asymmetrical position.
The PROJIMO team and Celia's mother experimented with different seating, trying to find a position that would reduce Celia's spasticity and give her more control of her body, especially of her head, arms and hands.
An innovation: The most effective seating arrangement proved to be a tire swing. It can be made like this.
The double curve of the tire gently bent the child's head, shoulders, and hips forward. And it held her legs in a bent, relaxed position.
In the tire swing, Celia had much more head and hand control and little sign of spasticity.
She was even able to reach forward and hold the tire rim.
PROJIMO encouraged the family to make a tire swing in their home, and to improvise other seating arrangements that would provide a similar function.
Problems: Shortcomings of the tire swing are: (1) It is suspended in one location and cannot be easily moved. (2) The tire works well for Celia, but for many children, a spastic pattern can be better reduced by flexing the hips to a 90-degree angle, which the tire swing does not do. (3) The tire holds the child in a semi-reclining position. But, for maximum function, it often helps to sit more upright.
Usefulness for other disabled children: The design for the tire swing can be found in the book Disabled Village Children. This kind of tire swing has been used in many countries, both in children's playgrounds and for rehabilitation of children with physical and mental delay. However, its potential as a device for special seating, especially for children with spastic cerebral palsy, still needs to be more fully recognized and implemented.
OLD TIRES have a hundred uses in
A PLAYGROUND FOR ALL CHILDREN
Nothing About Us Without Us
Developing Innovative Technologies
For, By and With Disabled Persons
by David Werner
Published by
HealthWrights
Workgroup for People's Health and Rights
Post Office Box 1344
Palo Alto, CA 94302, USA