Parent Therapist Partnership to Provide Early, Intensive Exercise in Perinatal Stroke

A prospective, single blind, parallel group, randomized control trial to determine if early, intensive lower extremity activity delivered by a physical therapist and a parent in partnership improves gross motor function more than usual care.

A mixed-methods randomized controlled trial at 3 healthcare centres: Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa. The period of participation for each child is 12 months. The Immediate Group will have 3 months of intervention and 9 months follow-up. The Delay Group will be followed for 6 months (waitlist-control period), then given the opportunity to receive the same intervention and followed for 3 months after the intervention. The intervention will be delivered by clinicians in the rehabilitation centres in partnership with the child's parents. Therapists will provide training 2 days a week and will coach the parents to provide the training at home for 2 days a week. The intervention is ELEVATE (Engaging the Lower Extremity Via Active Therapy Early) and consists of child-initiated, intensive leg activities for one hour a day, four days a week for 12 weeks.