Types of supportive clothing for corrective positioning of parts of the body, to assist stability and to provide sensory feedback for the child, sometimes in conjunction with AFOs (q.v.). Splints are sometimes also used to make the body work harder during exercises. Compression bracing is made from material that stretches, such as neoprene or lycra. Some types are available through NHS physiotherapy services.
Blair E, Ballantyne J, Horsham S and Chauvel P: 'A study of a dynamic proximal stability splint in the management of children with cerebral palsy'. Developmental medicine and child neurology, 1995, Vol 37, pp544-54
A review of evidence of effectiveness for casts, splints and orthoses for the upper body, by Teplicky, R. et al., is published by the Canadian CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research (2005). The amount of evidence available is limited. http://tinyurl.com/2kl2jy
The cerebral palsy charities Scope and Capability Scotland have also published research,
see http://tinyurl.com/2rp38w, where there is also a list of UK suppliers. One further supplier is Stabilizing Pressure Input Orthosis (SPIO),
www.spioworks.com, tel: 001 877 997 7746 [U.S.A.], using a lighter type of lycra.
