Orthopedic Impairment
Definition: Orthopedic impairment is
defined as a severe orthopedic impairment that adversely affects a child's
educational performance. The term includes impairments caused by congenital
anomaly (e.g., clubfoot, absence of some member, etc.), impairments caused by
disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis, etc.), and impairments from
other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, and fractures or burns that
cause contractures).
Characteristics of Students who have
Orthopedic Impairment:
·
Learning,
perceptual, or sensory problems
·
May
impede speech production
·
Impede
expressive language of the child
Characteristics based on 3 Categories
of Orthopedic Impairments:
Neuromotor
Impairments: an
abnormality of, or damage to, the brain, spinal cord, or nervous system that
sends impulses to the muscles of the body. These impairments are acquired at or
before birth, and often result in complex motor problems that can affect
several body systems.
·
Limited
limb movement
·
Loss
of urinary control
·
Loss
of proper alignment of spine
Two
most common are Spina Bifida and Cerebral Palsy
1.
Spina
Bifida: is a developmental defect of
the spinal column. It may or may not affect intellectual functioning. Spina
bifida occulta is a mild condition while spina bifida cystica is more serious.
·
Involves
some paralysis
2. Cerebral Palsy : refers to several
nonprogressive disorders of voluntary movement or posture that are caused by
malfunction of or damage to the developing brain that occurs before or during
birth or within the first few years of life. Individuals with cerebral palsy
have abnormal, involuntary, and/or uncoordinated motor movements.
The
four most common types of cerebral palsy include:
·
Spastic
(very tight muscles occurring in one or more muscle groups that result in
stiff, uncoordinated movements)
·
Athetoid
(movements are contorted, abnormal, and purposeless)
·
Ataxic
(poor balance and equilibrium in addition to uncoordinated voluntary movement)
·
Mixed
(any combination of the types)
Degenerative
Diseases: are
composed of various diseases that affect motor development. The most common is
muscular dystrophy.
·
Muscular
dystrophy: group of inherited diseases characterized by progressive muscle
weakness
Musculoskeletal
Disorders: are composed of
various conditions that can result in various levels of physical limitations
·
juvenile
rheumatoid arthritis
·
limb
deficiency
Teaching Tips
- Special seating arrangements to
develop useful posture and movements
- Instruction focused on development
of gross and fine motor skills
- Securing suitable augmentative
communication and other assistive devices
- Awareness of medical condition and
its effect on the student (such as getting tired quickly)
- Educate everyone in the school
community on a student’s disability
- Have parent/student/resource staff
conferences to ensure classroom is accommodating for each child’s IEP
Due to the various
levels of severity of orthopedic impairment, multiple types of assistive
technology may be used
·
speech
recognition software
·
screen
reading software
·
augmentative
and alternative communication devices (such as communication boards)
·
academic
software packages for students with disabilities
Learning Tools
- Physical
Therapists who work on gross motor skills (focusing on the legs, back,
neck and torso)
- Occupational
Therapists who work on fine motor skills (focusing on the arms and hands
as well as daily living activities such as dressing and bathing)
- Speech-Language
Pathologists who work with the student on problems with speech and
language
- Adapted Physical
Education Teachers, who are specially trained PE teachers who work along
with the OT and PT to develop an exercise program to help students with
disabilities
- Other Therapists
(Massage Therapists, Music Therapists, etc.)
Additional Resources
·
National Center on
Accessible Instructional Materials http://aim.cast.org/learn/disabilityspecific/physical
United Cerebral Palsy: http://www.ucp.org/
No comments:
Post a Comment