Improved abdomen muscle activity with interferential current therapy in cerebral palsy with constipation: a randomized controlled trial study

Background: Children with cerebral palsy (CP) often experience many comorbidities, such as constipation. Pain and discomfort that often accompany constipation have an impact on behavior and decrease quality of life. Abdominal muscle weakness can cause a low increase in intra-abdominal pressure so that the expulsive force during defecation is not adequate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the addition of interferential current (IFC) therapy on standard therapy (lactulose) on abdominal muscle activity in children with cerebral palsy (CP) with constipation.
Methods: This research is a true experimental study with pre and post-test randomized control group design. Subjects were 18 children with CP who were constipated according to the ROMA IV criteria, which were divided into two groups, namely the control group who received standard therapy (lactulose) and the intervention group who received lactulose plus IFC therapy with a frequency of 4000-4100 Hz, duration 20 minutes, 3 times a week for 1 month. The parameters evaluated in this study were the value of abdominal muscle activity at rest and during contraction. Measurements were carried out twice, before and one week after the completion of the IFC therapy series. Data were analyzed computerized with SPSS v20.0.
Results: There was a significant decrease in abdominal muscle activity at rest (P= .024) in the treatment group, while there was an insignificant increase in the control group (P= 0,266).
The abdominal muscle activity during contraction in the treatment group showed a greater increase (P= 0.730) than in the control group (P= 0.831). The effect size in the treatment group is 0.2, which means it has a small effect, while in the control group is 0.1, which means it has no effect.
Conclusion: The addition of IFC to standard therapy (lactulose) can improve abdominal muscle activity so that IFC can be an alternative supporting therapy in cerebral palsy with constipation to provide a good clinical response.