Impact of hippotherapy on the life habits of children with disabilities: a systematic review.

The research article discusses the impact of hippotherapy on the everyday life habits of children with disabilities, indicating improvements in areas of mobility, communication, and interpersonal relationships, and suggesting the need for further research in other dimensions of life habits.

Research Purpose

• The research primarily focuses on assessing the effects of hippotherapy (therapeutic horse riding) on the daily life habits of children with disabilities.

Research Methodology and Criteria

• The study conducted was a systematic review following PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines.
• They consulted five databases to identify relevant studies, without specifying which ones.
• The Inclusion criteria for the review involved ages between 2-to-18 years old, therapies provided by a Physical Therapist (PT), Occupational Therapist (OT) or Speech-Language Pathologist/Therapist (SLP/SLT) and variables related to life habits as defined by the Human Development Model – Disability Creation Process.

Quality Analysis and Levels of Evidence

• The quality of the identified studies was analyzed using a review form developed by the McMaster University Occupational Therapy Evidence-Based Practice Research Group.
• The levels of evidence for each study were evaluated using the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine guidelines.
• The overall ratings of the investigations were categorized as excellent, acceptable, and poor, with evidence levels of high, moderate, and low.

Results and Findings

• The systematic review discovered a noticeable link between hippotherapy and positive changes in three life habits: mobility, communication, and interpersonal relationships.
• It was concluded that hippotherapy could have a favorable effect on these three categories of life habits for children with disabilities.

Need for Further Research

• The research identified a need for further investigation in the areas of education, housing, nutrition, personal care, and recreation.
• The scope for more research was suggested in community and spiritual life, employment, physical fitness, psychological wellbeing, and responsibility, as no studies were found in these aspects.

Implications for Rehabilitation

• The research had implications for rehabilitation treatments stating that occupational, physical, and speech-language therapists must continue to intervene with children having developmental delays with various diagnoses as demonstrated by the 15 studies involving hippotherapy from acceptable to excellent quality.
• The improvements observed suggested therapists to continue using hippotherapy in areas of mobility, communication, and interpersonal relations, as indicated specifically by five studies with evidence ranging from moderate to high.
• Therapists are encouraged to use hippotherapy for improvements in other life habits like education, housing, nutrition, personal care, and recreation, as alluded to by three studies.