Igniting Mobility in Adolescents and Young Adults With Cerebral Palsy

The participant will be asked to perform a series of timed (in seconds) 10-meter walking tasks.

The participants will walk along a 400 meter course laid out on the Boys Town campus that incorporates uphill/downhill grades, stairs, curbs, grass and uneven surfaces. The time (in seconds) to complete the course will be used as an outcome variable.

The participant will start the test by sitting on a bench. The time (in seconds) it takes the participant to stand-up, walk to a line on the floor that is 3-meters away and return back to sitting on the bench will be the outcome measure.

This is a clinical assessment where the participant is asked to isolate and move the lower extremity joints. The examiner grades the amount of movement and the ability of the participant to isolate the control. A grade of 0 indicates the participant cannot move the joint, 1 indicates the participant can move the joint but it is impaired, and 2 indicates normal movement of the joint.

Modified Ashworth: This is a clinical assessment where the therapist passively moves the participant's joints and rates the level of spasticity. Scores range from 0-5, where 0 indicates no tone, 5 indicates rigidity.

This is a clinical assessment where the participant is asked to isolate and move the lower extremity joints. The examiner grades the amount of movement and the ability of the participant to isolate the control. A grade of 0 indicates the participant cannot move the joint, 1 indicates the participant can move the joint but it is impaired, and 2 indicates normal movement of the joint.

Magnetoencephalogram (MEG) or electroencephalogram (EEG) scan: The frequency bands of interest include theta (4-8 Hz), alpha (8-12 Hz), beta(15-30 Hz) and gamma (>30 Hz).

Percutaneous electrical stimulations of the femoral nerve applied via an anode that is positioned on the patella and a cathode that is positioned on the popliteal fossa will be applied to the right leg. A wireless surface EMG sensor positioned on the soleus will measure the motor response. The muscular (M-wave) will be assessed while resting and walking.

Percutaneous electrical stimulations of the femoral nerve applied via an anode that is positioned on the patella and a cathode that is positioned on the popliteal fossa will be applied to the right leg. A wireless surface EMG sensor positioned on the soleus will measure the Hoffmann reflex. The spinal reflexes (H-wave) will be assessed while resting and walking.

Subtests: Finger Windows, Picture Memory, Symbolic Working Memory:

A standardized test that measures memory functioning, evaluating both immediate and delayed memory ability in addition to the acquisition of new learning. Viable for young children and adults.

A neuropsychological measure of selective and sustained attention in addition to visual scanning speed. Participants are tasked with crossing out any letter "d" with two marks around above it or below it in any order, in a mix of other letters and with various numbers of marks around them. Viable for young children and adults.

A neuropsychological test of visual attention and task switching. The subject is tasked to connect a set of numbered 25 dots as quickly as possible while still maintaining accuracy, with the second test increasing in cognitive load by introducing letters as well. Viable for young children and adults.

A subtest of the Wechsler Memory Scales (WMS), subjects are read a sequence of numbers and asked to repeat the same sequence back to the examiner in order (forward span) or in reverse order (backward span) to measure short term memory capacity in young children and adults.

A neuropsychological test that assesses the ability to inhibit cognitive interference during the processing of a specific stimulus feature impedes the simultaneous processing of a second stimulus attribute (the Stroop Effect). The Stroop Effect is the delay in reaction time between congruent and incongruent stimuli, Such that a mismatch between the name of a color (e.g., "blue", "green", or "red") and the color it is printed on (i.e., the word "red" printed in blue ink instead of red ink).

Children with severe developmental disabilities are often dependent on parents/caregivers for much of their daily needs. These children often have multiple co-morbid conditions which can have a significant impact on their overall health and quality of life. Interventions are aimed at preserving or improving their health, comfort and quality of life and to facilitate caregiving. CP CHILD is an instrument that aims to measure these phenomena. Respondents rate a number of areas including the difficulty of activities for their child (Scale ranging from 0-Not Possible to 6-No problem at all) and choose the level of assistance needed to perform these activities (Scale ranging from 0-Total to 3-Independent), how often their child experience pain or discomfort (Scale ranging from 0-Every day to 5-None of the time) and intensity (0-Severe to 3-None), importance of items in child's quality of life (0-Least Important to 5-Most Important), and overall health of child (0-Very Poor to 5-Excellent).

A survey measure that examines the extent to which people believe their illness - in this case the questionnaire has been adapted to individuals with CP, has had a positive benefit despite the negative consequences of having CP. Participants indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with each statement by circling a number between 5 "strongly agree" and 1 "strongly disagree"

Tool designed to identify sleep habits and to make a screening of sleep problems among preschoolers, elementary school children, and high school students.

The PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale is a symptom-specific instrument to measure fatigue across pediatric populations. It measures cognitive fatigue which focuses on problems with memory and attention, areas known to be affected in children with CP, on a scale ranging from 0-if it is never a problem and 4-if it is almost always a problem.

An effective instrument used to measure the quality and patterns of sleep in adults.

Adult Version: This tool for adults, uses a pictorial representation of a symbolic ladder, developed to capture the common sense of social status based on usual socioeconomic status indicators. It has the additional advantage to allow comparisons between studies conducted in different populations.

Youth Version: This tool is a two-item instrument that measures a how a young person perceives their family's and their own social standing

The symbolic ladder has 10 rungs. The higher the rung, the higher the perceived social status.