Treadmill Training

This is probably the only intervention I had learned about that I did not use with Lucas. I desperately wanted to, but finding a treadmill that would work was difficult. Even now a couple years later it seems that they are much easier to come by. The theory behind it is solid. All babies have a stepping reflex, which basically means if you place the child on their feet and lean them forward, one foot will automatically come out.

To hold a child on a treadmill with this reflex you are get continual eliciting of the reflex. Biomechanically, it doesn't mean much, but neurologically the benefits are numerous.
1. Increased communication between the 2 hemispheres of the brain
2. Feeding normalized sensation of what "recipricol movement" feels like into baby's brain.
3. Organization of the gross motor pathways which have connections to virtually every other area of development - the benefit of "cross patterns" are well recognized.
4. Increased proprioceptive input to lower extremities. (pressure sense, sometimes because of low tone a child will demonstrate postural instability, which means they are literally afraid to take a step because of being "unsure." This interferes with everything from walking to stair use and other higher level physical skills.)
5. I'm sure any mom or dad would find a way to turn this into a fantastic game filled with silly songs and rhyming stories set to the beat of the footsteps.....multisensory, multisensory, multisensory!
I'm sure the OT in me could continue with this list ad nauseum, but it is something I think you should know about. This isn't event a disputed benefit, the evidence is clear, treadmill training with babies with trisomy 21 helps them walk much earlier than those who didn't have the benefit. I think from a neurodevelopmental standpoint the benefit is FAR greater!
www.ns.umich.edu/htdocs/releases/story.php?id=6142