AIM: To develop age related norms for the Challenge-20 assessment with typically developing (TD) children and explore how scores of children with cerebral palsy (CP) in Gross Motor Function Classification Scale (GMFCS) level I and II compare to these age norms.
METHOD: 150 TD children 7 - 12 years (69 male=69; 81 female) in 5 age groups were enrolled and tested using Challenge-20 to determine age related norms, and compared with Challenge-20 results of children with CP (n=191), GMFCS level I (n = 135) and II (n = 56), 5-18 years.
RESULTS: Reference curves by age and Challenge-20 score, were plotted across the 1st to 95th percentiles. Younger TD children (7 - 8 years) scored lower (~50%) and older children (9 - 12 years) scored >85% and higher on the Challenge-20 showing similar developmental trajectories. Children with CP followed similar, albeit lower, Challenge-20 score trajectory to that of TD children with continued progression beyond age 12, and the highest scores came close or overlapped (15% of cases) the lowest scores of TD children.
INTERPRETATION: The Challenge-20 is sensitive to progression in advanced gross motor skills in TD children. Children with CP in GMFCS level I follow similar, but lower, Challenge score trajectory to that of TD children, and in some cases come close to lower level abilities of TD children. The reference percentiles extend the clinical utility of the Challenge-20 and open the door to thinking more about advanced gross motor interventions for children with CP in GMFCS levels I and II given their potential to progress along the developmental trajectory.
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