to ascertain whether the APA for gait initiation are specifically impaired in clinical subtypes
of CP with involvement of cortico–basal ganglia circuits, such as dystonic and choreo–
athetotic forms (J.F. Kerrigan et al. 1991, Cheney 1997). Analysis of more subtle changes
concerning abnormal modulation of the spatio–temporal parameters of the imbalance
programme warrant further evaluation as well.
As for the gait termination task, to our knowledge no quantitative studies have been
carried out in typically developing children and children with CP, even though clinical
experience indicates that children with bilateral spastic CP can display difficulties in stopping
gait and sometimes chose to terminate walking by kneeling down, at least in the earlier
phases of natural history.