Authors: Chia-Ling Chen, MD, PhD Ching-Yi Wu, PhD Alice May-Kuen Wong, MD Pao-Tsai Cheng, MD Wei-Hsien Hong, MS Hsieh-Ching Chen, PhD Affiliations: From the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Chang Gung Memorial and Children Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan (CLC, AMKW, PTC, WHH); the Department of Occupational Therapy, Chang Gung University, Taipei, Taiwan (CYW); and the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, Chaoyang University of Technology, Taichung, Taiwan (HCC). Correspondence: All correspondence and requests for reprints should be addressed to Chia- Ling Chen, MD, PhD, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial and Children Hospital, 5 Fu-Hsing St. Kwei-Shan, Tao-Yuan 333, Taiwan. 0894-9115/03/8208-0627/0 American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Copyright © 2003 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins DOI: 10.1097/01.PHM.0000078180.72129.5C Correlation of Polyelectromyographic Patterns and Clinical Motor Manifestations in Children with Cerebral Palsy ABSTRACT Chen CL, Wu CY, Wong AMK, Cheng PT, Hong WH, Chen HS: Correlation of polyelectromyographic patterns and clinical motor manifestations in chil- dren with cerebral palsy. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2003;82:627– 635. Objective: We investigated the correlation between movement patterns, measured by polyelectromyography (PEMG), and clinical motor manifesta- tions in children with cerebral palsy. Design: Subjects included 53 children with spastic cerebral palsy (diplegic [n = 43] and quadriplegic [n = 10] groups) and 18 normal children. All children underwent PEMG assessments, recorded from pairs of flexor/exten- sor muscles during voluntary movement. We correlated PEMG patterns with clinical motor assessments, including muscle tone, range of motion, and am- bulatory and functional capacities in the children with cerebral palsy. Results: Children with cerebral palsy exhibited four distinct PEMG patterns, ranging from partial reciprocal to complete synchrony. Lower PEMG pattern scores were significantly associated with better ambulatory (rho = 0.88, P  0.01) and functional (rho = 0.78, P  0.01) capacities. PEMG patterns also had weakly positive relationships with muscle tone (rho  0.33, P  0.01) and range of motion of both lower limbs (rho  0.31, P  0.01). Most children of spastic diplegia with PEMG patterns II and III had independent ambulatory capacities and mild limitation of functional capacity, whereas most children with pattern of IV and V had no ambulatory abilities and no independent functional capacities (P  0.01). Conclusions: These findings suggest that PEMG patterns correlate with clinical motor deficits and may allow us to plan treatment strategies based on underlying motor control in cerebral palsy. Key Words: Cerebral Palsy, Electromyography, Motor Control, Motor Function August 2003 Polyelectromyographic Patterns in CP 627 CME Article ● 2003 Series ● Number 8 Electromyography