OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether healthy children and adolescents suffering from neurological diseases can be grouped into distinct and homogeneous groups using criteria such as cognitive performance, motor functioning and parents' perceptions about the rehabilitation facilitators. METHODS: Sample was comprised by 15 healthy children and 43 patients (28 with cerebral palsy and 15 with stroke (n=15), aged from five to 18 years old. The Environment Factors Assessment related to the Children Neurologic Rehabilitation (EFACN) was used to assess parents' perception about the rehabilitation facilitators. Cognitive impairment was assessed using the Mini Mental Status Examination (MMSE), adapted for this age, and the motor impairment was clinically evaluated. Cluster analysis and one way ANOVA were conducted to compare the results. RESULTS: Cluster analysis identified four groups with distinct clinical and socio-demographic patterns, confirmed by ANOVA (p<0.001). Dissociation between cognitive and motor functions was found. Parents of children with severe impairment evaluated more positively rehabilitation facilitators. CONCLUSIONS: The qualification of rehabilitation facilitators by EFACN and cognitive assessment by MMSE can help to identify the needs of children with neurological disabilities who present cognitive and motor impairment.
stroke; cerebral palsy; International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health; cognition; rehabilitation
