Associations of Related Disorders and Contextual Factors of Young People with Cerebral Palsy with Transition to Adulthood

Description

When preparing young people with cerebral palsy for adulthood, related disorders and contextual factors should be considered and the identification of their association with the success of the transition process should be clarified.. A cross-sectional design was applied. The inclusion criteria for the participants: age 16-21 years, a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, none or some/uncertain cognitive impairment. Transition readiness in terms of autonomy level in participation and health care was measured with the Rotterdam Transition Profile, 1.0, version of March 2010. . Eighty-one young people took part (male 41, female 40). Participants’ age was associated with autonomy in education and employment (rs 0.28), finance (rs 0.43), housing (rs 0.29), leisure (social activities) (rs 0.26), sexuality (rs 0.24), services and aids (rs 0.35) and rehabilitation services (rs 0.69). Severe vision impairment was associated with autonomy in leisure (social activities) (rs −0.23), intimate relationships (rs −0.25) and sexuality (rs −0.23). Severe speech impairment was associated with autonomy in sexuality (rs −0.22). Need for an assistant was associated with the autonomy in education and employment (rs −0.44), housing (rs −0.31), leisure (social activities) (rs −0.30), intimate relationships (rs −0.45), sexuality (rs −0.44), transportation (rs −0.76), care demands (rs −0.32) and services and aids (rs −0.39). The level of education of the mother was associated with the autonomy in intimate relationships (rs −0.37), sexuality (rs −0.26) and transportation (rs −0.24). The level of education of the father was associated with the autonomy in intimate relationships (rs −0.28). Number of siblings (> 1) was associated with the autonomy in housing (rs 0.38). All correlations had p ≤ 0.05.. The need for an assistant and participants’ age had the most association with autonomy domains. Nevertheless, any significant associations should be considered when planning transition process to adulthood for young people with cerebral palsy.

Period	29 Mar 2023
Event title	RSU Research week 2023: Society. Health. Welfare
Event type	Conference
Conference number	9
Organiser	Rīga Stradiņš University
Location	Riga, LatviaShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International