Lycra suits

[roundthebend4]

Can anyone tell me if they really do help give better core stablity and limb control , been mentioned by ds physio today , though not mentioned the nhs funding so any idears where to get to

Oh yes! We had great success with a lycra suit. Noticeable increase in core stability and use of limbs when further away from the body (forgotten the technical term for that!) Over a period of about 8 months core stability carried over so that it was better even when the suit was off. We didn't get a replacement when he outgrew it as we were having a few issues with him wearing it (he was a stroppy 3.9 ish, maybe a bit older!) and OT and I felt we had had good results and if necessary we would come back to it later on.

We had long arms and long legs and noticed that DS's heels came down and he had much more functional hand use.

NHS provided ours so not sure where to get funding rom but I have heard of others getting charity funding.

Sorry have DSs 'helping' - hope this makes sense!

ah ds physio and ot seem determined not to spend any of the nhs money or the lea`s despite them saying oh yes he ha sproblem here and here but not saying how to meet them

Ds had one for a while, it was NHS funded but came from Trulife and cost about £350?

Hairy Mac
What type of CP is a lycra suit best for? DGS has WBS (wobbly boy syndrome) Sp.quad officially but not v. tight! with low tone in trunk and neck. He seems more balance and coordination and looks like a good old fashioned corset would stabilise him

beammeup we use a velcro attractive elastic trunk support for DS, and also a neoprene wrap for his trunk as he is very weak in this area!
roundthebend - they are a fairly standar item supplied via the NHS these days, but not cheap if you end up going privately.

DS has typical prem CP, officially spastic diplegia with upper limb involvement. Basically high tone in legs and a bit in arms but low tone in trunk.

dd2 trialled the velcro elastic trunk support before being given a lycra suit. hers was thigh length and sleeveless (like a vest and long shorts all in one.)

it made a huge difference but took a while for her to get used to wearing it - we didn't let her wear it if she had a cold/ cough for example, because she couldn't cough properly whilst wearing it. i've heard of children being more refluxy/ vomity with them on, but it didn't affect dd2 in that way.

hers was nhs provided.

make sure you specify whether the main carer is left or right handed when the suit is ordered... if the zips come the 'wrong' way round it is nigh on impossible to get them done up!

Thank you very much for this post, I think DGS would be a good candidate in the future. Anything that helps him not look like a drunken sailor has got to be worth a try.
Thanks for tip on zips.