Tasio’s Upsee Story

Tasio is a 2 year old little boy with spastic dystonic quadriplegic cerebral palsy as a result of Periventricular Leukomalacia. He has a twin brother, and two older brothers and a sister. He is an active child who is interested in the world around him and he loves to participate with the rest of his family.

Clinical Background

Tasio has developed head control, and is able to commando crawl, but independent sitting and four-point crawling is not possible due to reduced trunk control. Tasio has good oral-motor control and enjoys eating. Although generally dystonic, Tasio’s has hypertonic upper limbs, making fine motor activities difficult for him to achieve. Tasio also has strabismus which reduces his binocular vision and his ability to develop three-dimensional spatial awareness.

Our Approach

Tasio’s parents bought an Upsee for him as a means of accessing his environment, providing an alternative means of therapy, and participating together as family.

The Result

Upsee success was not immediate for Tasio – initially his head flexed when he tried to move his legs & his arms were very rigid (suggesting a strong STNR reflex), but with practice Tasio has better integrated control of his head, legs and arms. Tasio’s parents feel that he has more awareness of his surroundings, which feeds into the development of his spatial awareness and cognitive development. Tasio himself appears more independent and confident as he is able to take the lead, and the family do not have to carry him when they are out.