Poster presentation Tuesday 8 October
Background
Musculoskeletal (MSK) problems in children and young people (CYP) are common. The majority will present to healthcare professionals in the community but it can be challenging to identify those with serious disease requiring onward referral. pGALS (paediatric Gait, Arms, Legs and Spine) was developed as a simple, quick MSK clinical assessment to discern abnormal joints, initially within paediatric rheumatology and later targeted at non-specialists. Anecdotally, pGALS can detect joint and functional problems in CYP with other serious conditions, but alone is unlikely to be specific enough. It is unknown whether a pGALSplus assessment is practical. Our aim was to scope the literature about MSK assessments applicable to CYP used in clinical practice, focusing on evidence of validity in the context of diagnosis and assessment of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS), Muscular dystrophy (MD) and developmental coordination disorder (DCD) to develop an extended pGALS.
Methods
Scoping review using the Newcastle University Library search tool (which includes several databases) and Google Scholar, and consulting NICE guidance/pathways. Search terms included dyspraxia, paediatric MSK assessment, screening tools, balance, and rheumatology, assessment tools for MD, MPS, and JIA. Studies cited within relevant articles uncovered through searches were also checked. The search was conducted between 1 October and 1 December 2018. Publication date was limited to post-1998, language did not constitute as exclusion criteria unless translation was unavailable.
Results
32 journal articles were deemed appropriate, describing specific assessment or screening tools in the context of diagnosis of our target conditions. Within DCD, motor co-ordination test batteries aid diagnosis as part of specialist assessment, but are regarded as too lengthy for the purpose of screening; a questionnaire may be useful as a first-step diagnostic tool, along with an assessment of static balance (found to be significantly worse in children with DCD). In paediatric rheumatology, pGALS is the only validated screening tool to discern normal from abnormal. Other tools to assess health and wellbeing, disability and function are validated in the context of established disease only. For neuromuscular conditions the North Star Ambulatory Assessment is valid, reliable and practical as a functional assessment, and includes activities that are necessary to remain functionally ambulant. With regards to MPS, searches did not reveal specific MSK tests, but evidence suggests that skeletal malformations and joint problems were the most frequently presenting signs. pGALS performs well to identify abnormal joints with restriction within an MPS group.
Conclusion
This review supports the development of pGALSplus; a toolkit to facilitate identification and assessment of CYP with potentially serious MSK disease. pGALSplus will be targeted at community-based clinicians and will likely include physical examination, questionnaire(s) and appropriate adjuncts. Our group is currently developing pGALSplus, aiming to describe feasibility and acceptability, and develop educational and training resources, aimed at multi-professionals.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
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