Vojt's method: the Czech discovery that has helped thousands of children to get on their feet

For more than sixty years, experts around the world have been applying diagnostic and therapeutic procedures to help patients with severe mobility disorders, as well as milder movement disorders. In the 1950s, they were developed in Czechoslovakia by Professor Václav Vojta, who researched the treatment of children with cerebral palsy and discovered that people have genetically encoded movement patterns that can be triggered by activating specific muscles or applying pressure to specific places.

Because of the attitude of the regime of that time, Professor Vojta could not apply his knowledge in practice, so in 1968 he emigrated to Germany, where he continued his treatment of childhood developmental disorders and became a world-renowned expert. He returned to Czechoslovakia after the revolution in 1989.

The method used for both central and peripheral disorders of the musculoskeletal system is explained in more detail by physiotherapist Mgr. "The diagnostics is based on the examination of primitive reflexes, position tests and readings of the child's spontaneous motor behaviour. During reflex locomotion therapy, specific muscle interactions are then activated in precisely defined starting positions using trigger zones. The resulting movement is induced reflexively, that is, without the conscious participation of the patient."

"The therapy is essential for children in infancy, when it detects mobility disorders early."

Although the method also helps adults, it is crucial for children of infancy, when it is possible to detect movement disorders early and determine the most effective therapy. "If the muscles are repeatedly engaged in the wrong mode, they shorten and eventually undergo ligamentous transformation. If alternate movement patterns have already developed and become fixed, then we try to at least weaken them." Optimally, according to Pruner, it is best to guide the child as naturally as possible through each stage of development until independent walking. "For severe diagnoses where we suspect that walking will never be possible, we try to at least prevent the development of muscle contractures, joint damage or severe scoliosis," he adds.

Specifically, it's ideal to start applying the Vojta method in the first three months of a baby's life. "In a healthy baby, at around one month after birth, a fundamental change in posture occurs as the central nervous system matures and physiological mobility begins to develop rapidly. In a child with a central disorder, however, this automatism is not realised or is reduced," explains Pruner. When a baby has a central disorder and only appears for therapy in the third trimester or later, it is certain that the most valuable period of time to work reflexively with the patient has been missed. "The outcome will never be as good as if we had started therapy early. It is little known among the general public that a child is not born with infantile cerebral palsy (CP) but gradually develops into it. If we intervene therapeutically early in borderline children, we can reverse the development of infantile cerebral paresis," he adds.

Exercise at home with parents is key

Parents themselves play a vital role in their child's therapy. They are taught the method by the physiotherapist after the examination so that they can perform it well at home, several times a day for sufficient stimulation of the central nervous system. According to Pruner, there is no alternative to the method, especially for infants with central disabilities, although many new therapeutic techniques have recently emerged. But these do not always honour the principles of natural motor development. Still, parents often look for other ways to help their children. "This is especially the case when they have already had years of therapy with the Vojta method, they are exhausted, the therapy may not be going as well as they would have liked, and they finally realise that their child will have a permanent handicap. This is exactly the situation when they feel like quitting the Vojta Method." Combining the method with other physical activities can be another problem - the damaged central nervous system can easily become overloaded.

In the beginning, exercise with babies can be accompanied by intense crying. However, experts advise parents not to let it get them down and to think mainly about the fact that they want to help their children. They will then calm down too and regular exercise with them will often do wonders.

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Text: Mariana Novotná