Abstract
This study was intended to examine the differences in the motion properties of the arms in children with cerebral palsy who were using a mouse or a trackball (hereinafter referred to as two types of PDs) for a personal computer. The method was applied variously for 9 children with cerebral palsy who used two types of PDs daily, the joint movement distance was measured when they were operating the PDs and differences in the joint motion of the arms were examined. According to the results, in the group using a mouse the joint movement distance of the metacarpophalangeal joint, wrist joint and cubital joint, but not including the shoulder joint, increased in the arm on the operation side. In contrast, in the group that was using a track ball, the joint movement distance of all of the joints that were measured in the arm on the operation side increased. The reason for this finding is believed to be due to differences in the arm functions associated with the types of cerebral palsy affected the groups that used either the mouse or the track ball.
