CONTEXT Equine-assisted therapy in different facets aims to improve the clinical condition of children with cerebral palsy. A more comprehensive overview on the overall effects and on the differences between different treatment modalities seems desirable. OBJECTIVE We compared the effectiveness of various equine-assisted treatments on motor capabilities and quality of life of children with cerebral palsy. DATA SOURCES We conducted systematic searches of PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. STUDY SELECTION Randomized and nonrandomized controlled parallel-group or crossover studies on equine-assisted therapies in comparison with standard of care were included. DATA EXTRACTION Data on motor function assessed by different instruments were considered as the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes included global, social, physical, and emotional scores of quality of life. RESULTS Strong evidence for a positive effect of equine-assisted therapies, particularly hippotherapy, on global gross motor function and motor capabilities during walking in children with cerebral palsy was identified (SMD 0.24, 95% CI 0.05 to 0.43, P = .01, t2 = 0.00, I2 = 15%; SMD 2.68, 95% CI 1.02 to 4.34, P = .002, t2 = 0.0, I2 = 0%). No evidence for the improvement in quality of life could be shown in the global assessment, nor in any subscore. CONCLUSIONS Equine-assisted therapy, particularly hippotherapy, can be a therapeutic tool for children who are learning to walk. LIMITATION The heterogeneity of tools used in different studies and the low number of studies addressing quality of life issues limited the number of studies available for distinct analyses.

中文翻译：

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脑瘫儿童的马辅助疗法：荟萃分析。

背景 不同方面的马辅助治疗旨在改善脑瘫儿童的临床状况。对整体效果和不同治疗方式之间的差异进行更全面的概述似乎是可取的。目的 我们比较了各种马辅助治疗对脑瘫儿童运动能力和生活质量的影响。数据来源 我们对 PubMed、Embase、Web of Science 和 Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials 进行了系统搜索。研究选择 随机和非随机对照平行组或交叉研究马辅助疗法与护理标准进行比较。数据提取通过不同仪器评估的运动功能数据被认为是主要结果。次要结果包括生活质量的全球、社会、身体和情感评分。结果 确定了强有力的证据表明马辅助疗法，特别是海马疗法，对脑瘫儿童行走期间的整体粗大运动功能和运动能力有积极影响（SMD 0.24，95% CI 0.05 至 0.43，P = .01，t2 = 0.00，I2 = 15%；SMD 2.68，95% CI 1.02 至 4.34，P = .002，t2 = 0.0，I2 = 0%）。全球评估或任何子评分均未显示生活质量改善的证据。结论 马辅助疗法，尤其是海马疗法，可以成为正在学习走路的儿童的一种治疗工具。