Effects of the Otago Exercise Program on Balance, Endurance, and Motor Coordination in Children With Down Syndrome

Overview

The study will use a quasi-experimental design conducted over ten months in pediatric physiotherapy departments of tertiary care hospitals and special education schools. It will include 30 children aged 6-14 years with mild to moderate intellectual disability, selected after eligibility screening and guardian consent. Outcomes will be assessed using BOT-2, Berg Balance Scale, MMSE-C, and Six-Minute Walk Test to measure motor skills, balance, cognition, and endurance. Ethical approval will be obtained from the Research Ethical Committee of Riphah International University, Lahore, and data will be analyzed using SPSS version 26.0.

Children with Down syndrome (DS) commonly face challenges such as reduced muscle tone, joint instability, and impaired coordination, all of which can impact their balance, mobility, and physical independence. While Otago exercises have proven effective in enhancing balance and coordination in older adults and adults with Down syndrome, their application in children with DS remains limited and underexplored. The study will employ a quasi-experimental design. Data will be collected from the pediatric physiotherapy departments of tertiary care hospitals and special education schools. The duration of the study will be ten months following the approval of the research synopsis. A total of 30 children, aged between 6 and 14 years and diagnosed with mild to moderate intellectual disability, will be recruited. All referred participants will undergo screening to assess their eligibility based on predefined inclusion criteria. Informed consent will be obtained from the guardians of participants who meet the eligibility requirements prior to their enrollment in the study. Outcome measures will include the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, Second Edition (BOT-2), the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and Mini-Mental State Examination for Children (MMSE-C), and the Six-Minute Walk Test (6MWT) to assess endurance capacity. The research synopsis will be submitted to the Research Ethical Committee of Riphah International University, Lahore, for ethical approval. Data will be analyzed using SPSS version 26.0