Abstract

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the effects of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) combined with exercise on popliteal angle, gross motor function, and quality of life in children with spastic cerebral palsy (CP).

Patients and methods: This double-blind, randomized-controlled study included 21 children with spastic CP. Participants were randomly assigned to stretching plus LLLT (830 nm, 100 mW, 4 J/cm²; n = 11) or stretching alone (n = 10) for eight weeks. Outcomes included popliteal angle, Gross Motor Function Measure-88 (GMFM-88), and Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL).

Results: Of the patients, 7 were male and 14 were female with a mean age of 9.62 ± 2.33 years (range, 5 to 14) years. Both groups showed significant within-group improvements in all parameters (p < 0.05). Compared to the control group, the LLLT group demonstrated significantly greater reductions in popliteal angles (p < 0.05). However, between-group differences for GMFM-88 and PedsQL scores were not statistically significant (p = 0.072, p = 0.438, and p = 0.471 for GMFM-88, PedQL General Fatigue and PedQL Sleep-related Fatigue respectively).

Conclusion: Combining LLLT with exercise demonstrates superior efficacy in reducing spasticity compared to exercise alone in children with CP. However, this combination cannot yield superior improvements in gross motor function or quality of life within the eight-week study period.

Citation: Setiawati E, Munawaroh N, Wahyudati S, Paramitha A, Anjani A, Siawang H, et al. Efficacy of low-level laser therapy combined with exercise on popliteal angle, gross motor function, and quality of life in children with spastic cerebral palsy: A doubleblind, randomized-controlled study. Arch ISPRM 2026;1(3):245-252. https://doi. org/10.5606/archisprm.2026.72.

N.M., S.W.: Designed of study/supervision; E.S., A.P.: Coordinated the data collection and managed the clinical interventions; A.A., H.S.: Performed the statistical analysis and data interpretation; R.R., H.S.: Drafted the manuscript. All authors provided critical revisions for intellectual content and approved the final version for submission.

The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Data Availability
The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not‑for‑profit sectors.

AI Disclosure
The authors declare that artificial intelligence (AI) tools were not used, or were used solely for language editing, and had no role in data analysis, interpretation, or the formulation of conclusions. All scientific content, data interpretation, and conclusions are the sole responsibility of the authors. The authors further confirm that AI tools were not used to generate, fabricate, or ‘hallucinate’ references, and that all references have been carefully verified for accuracy.