This case study sought to understand the experience of a single family of a child with cerebral palsy (CP) using lower extremity orthoses (LEOs) in natural play contexts. CP is the most commonly occurring motor disability in childhood. Associated with CP, impairments in functional mobility, spasticity, varying degrees of muscle tone, ROM, and impaired gross and fine motor control are barriers to meaningful play experiences in this population. LEOs are widely prescribed devices for children with CP, used as walking aids and to improve/offset some of these performance deficits and body structures. Although, the true efficacy of LEOs is yet to be established. Play is the primary occupation of childhood, contributing to the development of cognitive, emotional, and physical skills of the child. Because play participation is vital to development throughout childhood, it is pertinent that habilitative professionals understand how use of a widely prescribed class of orthotics for children with CP may support and/or hinder participation in meaningful play experiences. Semi-structured interviews and video-recorded play observations were used to collect data. From this data, five themes emerged. These included; “LEOs support participation in gross motor play”, “Experience of social play/participation is adversely impacted by use of LEOs”, “Self-perception of braces and choice of play varies across contexts”, “LEOs as a facilitator and/or barrier to undesirable body positioning during play”, and “Pain/Discomfort caused by LEOs during play”.
","abstract_html":"<p>This case study sought to understand the experience of a single family of a child with cerebral palsy (CP) using lower extremity orthoses (LEOs) in natural play contexts. CP is the most commonly occurring motor disability in childhood. Associated with CP, impairments in functional mobility, spasticity, varying degrees of muscle tone, ROM, and impaired gross and fine motor control are barriers to meaningful play experiences in this population. LEOs are widely prescribed devices for children with CP, used as walking aids and to improve/offset some of these performance deficits and body structures. Although, the true efficacy of LEOs is yet to be established. Play is the primary occupation of childhood, contributing to the development of cognitive, emotional, and physical skills of the child. Because play participation is vital to development throughout childhood, it is pertinent that habilitative professionals understand how use of a widely prescribed class of orthotics for children with CP may support and/or hinder participation in meaningful play experiences. Semi-structured interviews and video-recorded play observations were used to collect data. From this data, five themes emerged. These included; “LEOs support participation in gross motor play”, “Experience of social play/participation is adversely impacted by use of LEOs”, “Self-perception of braces and choice of play varies across contexts”, “LEOs as a facilitator and/or barrier to undesirable body positioning during play”, and “Pain/Discomfort caused by LEOs during play”. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Jolly-Burchell, Lakyn Elizabeth"],"institution":"Eastern Kentucky University","degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Master's","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2020,"date_issued":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2020-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:16:00Z","subjects":["Cerebral Palsy","Children","Lower Extremity Orthotic","Occupational Therapy","Play","Neurology"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright 2020 Lakyn Elizabeth Jolly-Burchell"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/735","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Jolly-Burchell, Lakyn Elizabeth"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Master Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Master's"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Eastern Kentucky University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Cerebral Palsy","Children","Lower Extremity Orthotic","Occupational Therapy","Play","Neurology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2020 Lakyn Elizabeth Jolly-Burchell"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/735"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This case study sought to understand the experience of a single family of a child with cerebral palsy (CP) using lower extremity orthoses (LEOs) in natural play contexts. CP is the most commonly occurring motor disability in childhood. Associated with CP, impairments in functional mobility, spasticity, varying degrees of muscle tone, ROM, and impaired gross and fine motor control are barriers to meaningful play experiences in this population. LEOs are widely prescribed devices for children with CP, used as walking aids and to improve/offset some of these performance deficits and body structures. Although, the true efficacy of LEOs is yet to be established. Play is the primary occupation of childhood, contributing to the development of cognitive, emotional, and physical skills of the child. Because play participation is vital to development throughout childhood, it is pertinent that habilitative professionals understand how use of a widely prescribed class of orthotics for children with CP may support and/or hinder participation in meaningful play experiences. Semi-structured interviews and video-recorded play observations were used to collect data. From this data, five themes emerged. These included; “LEOs support participation in gross motor play”, “Experience of social play/participation is adversely impacted by use of LEOs”, “Self-perception of braces and choice of play varies across contexts”, “LEOs as a facilitator and/or barrier to undesirable body positioning during play”, and “Pain/Discomfort caused by LEOs during play”.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/PDF"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Experience of Play Participation and Use of Lower Extremity Orthoses in Children with Cerebral Palsy: Case Study"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Jolly-Burchell, Lakyn Elizabeth"],"dc:description.abstract":["This case study sought to understand the experience of a single family of a child with cerebral palsy (CP) using lower extremity orthoses (LEOs) in natural play contexts. CP is the most commonly occurring motor disability in childhood. Associated with CP, impairments in functional mobility, spasticity, varying degrees of muscle tone, ROM, and impaired gross and fine motor control are barriers to meaningful play experiences in this population. LEOs are widely prescribed devices for children with CP, used as walking aids and to improve/offset some of these performance deficits and body structures. Although, the true efficacy of LEOs is yet to be established. Play is the primary occupation of childhood, contributing to the development of cognitive, emotional, and physical skills of the child. Because play participation is vital to development throughout childhood, it is pertinent that habilitative professionals understand how use of a widely prescribed class of orthotics for children with CP may support and/or hinder participation in meaningful play experiences. Semi-structured interviews and video-recorded play observations were used to collect data. From this data, five themes emerged. These included; “LEOs support participation in gross motor play”, “Experience of social play/participation is adversely impacted by use of LEOs”, “Self-perception of braces and choice of play varies across contexts”, “LEOs as a facilitator and/or barrier to undesirable body positioning during play”, and “Pain/Discomfort caused by LEOs during play”.
"],"dc:format":["application/PDF"],"dc:identifier":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/735"],"dc:publisher":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2020 Lakyn Elizabeth Jolly-Burchell"],"dc:source":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"],"dc:subject":["Cerebral Palsy","Children","Lower Extremity Orthotic","Occupational Therapy","Play","Neurology"],"dc:title":["Experience of Play Participation and Use of Lower Extremity Orthoses in Children with Cerebral Palsy: Case Study"],"dc:type":["Master Thesis"],"thesis:degree_level":["Master's"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"],"thesis:institution_name":["Eastern Kentucky University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:16:00Z"}