A critical appraisal of "Effects of horse riding simulator on sitting motor function in children with spastic cerebral palsy"

The clinical question for the paper was can a horse riding simulator improve balance in children with cerebral palsy.This article chosen for this critical appraisal is “Effects of horse riding simulator on sitting motor function in children with spastic cerebral palsy.” Each section of the research article was analyzed for its strengths and weaknesses and evaluated for credibility. Overall, the study was credible and no major red flags were discovered. There were some minor issues but the majority of the article was written in a clear and logical fashion. The authors did their best to eliminate bias where they could, accurately interpreted their results in the discussion and acknowledged limitations to their study. The two biggest issues with the appraised paper were small organizational problems in the introduction that made it mildly confusing to read and difficult to understand tables. The results of the study support the implementation of HRS into standard treatment for children with spastic cerebral palsy and did not show any significant risks associated with the treatment. At the time of the appraisal, not much research has been done this intervention and further studies are need to determine just how effective (or non-effective) it is for improving balance in children with cerebral palsy