Effect of therapeutic riding on gait cycle parameters and behavioural skills of autistic children

We examined the effect of therapeutic riding on the development of autistic children. Examination of walking is appropriate for assessing the coordination of movement and for following the changes. In our view we found therapeutic riding should be considered as a new form of habilitation. 26 pupils (12 boys and 14 girls) of an auxiliary school participated in therapeutic riding. We analyze walking two times a school-term: (It means two full body analyses each time - before and after therapy: one month later) The research included a control ( non- riding group) 52 analyses were measured. We measured mental skills with Pedagogical Analysis and Curriculum (PAC) test. It consists of four parts: communication, self-service, motor skills and socialization. The gait cycle analysis consists of three parts: time-series analysis (displacement function) and part of the gait cycle (stance and swing phase). The third method was measured joint angles in each plane. We found significant differences between before and after the therapy. These parameters changed: length of the gait cycle received more stability in sagital plane. The according to our results therapeutic riding may be successfully used as an additional therapy for autistic children and it may present a form of habilitation in cases when other means of therapy are not successful.