The use of night orthoses in cerebral palsy treatment: sleep disturbance in children and parental burden or not?
Night braces do not hurt sleep for kids with CP, but parent personality and confidence shape how hard the routine feels.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Griffith et al. (2012) asked if night leg braces change sleep for kids with cerebral palsy. They also asked if parent personality changes how hard the brace routine feels.
The team compared two groups: kids who wore the braces and kids who did not. Parents filled out forms about sleep, stress, and how capable they felt.
What they found
Braces did not wake the children more. Sleep was the same in both groups.
Parents who were outgoing and calm said the brace routine was easier. Feeling capable lowered their stress even more.
How this fits with other research
Reader et al. (2025) looked at younger kids with CP and found pain, not braces, predicted bad sleep. Together the papers show braces are safe for nights, but pain still needs checking.
Lee et al. (2026) studied large parent surveys and found moms and dads of kids with IDD get less than six hours of sleep, especially when money is tight. Griffith et al. (2012) adds that parent personality and confidence also shape the burden, not just income.
Pitchford et al. (2019) and Heald et al. (2020) tested online sleep coaching for parents. They showed parent training can improve child sleep and lower parent fatigue. The 2012 study explains why some parents thrive with training: confident, easy-going parents feel less load.
Why it matters
You can tell families that night braces will not make sleep worse. Still, screen for pain and parent stress. A short mood or confidence scale at intake can flag parents who need extra support or training before starting nightly routines.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
In this study, we investigated whether (1) children with cerebral palsy (CP) using night orthoses experience more sleep disturbance than those not using night orthoses, (2) parental personality is related to the experienced parental burden of night orthoses, and (3) parental sense of competence in the parenting role mediates the relation between parental personality and parental burden. Eighty-two Flemish children with CP (55 using/27 not using night orthoses) with a mean age of 9 years and 10 months (GMFCS level I-V) participated in this cross-sectional questionnaire study, using the Sleep Disturbance Scale (SDSC), Parenting Stress Index (PSI), Big Five Inventory (BFI) and a newly developed inventory to assess the parental burden of night orthoses. Multivariate analysis of covariance revealed no statistical significant differences in sleep disturbance between children using/not using night orthoses. These findings are positive as the use of night orthoses are presumed to be important in providing adequate postural care in children with CP. Extraverted and emotionally stable parents experienced less parental burden. Mediation analysis revealed that parental sense of competence partially mediated the relation between parental personality and the parental burden. These results suggest that integrating parental sense of competence in treatment programs can improve the understanding of experienced burden. Implications of such integrations for therapy are discussed.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2012 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2011.10.026