Therapeutic effects of aquatic exercises on a boy with Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Abstract

Participation in physical activities benefits individuals with disabilities in terms of addressing their social and psychological needs in order for the purposes of quality living. This study reports the findings from a case study conducted with a boy who has Duchenne muscular dystro-phy (DMD) in a swimming pool located in the campus of a private uni-versity in North Cyprus. The current study reports the adjustments made in the swimming pool in accordance with the needs of the partic-ipant, how service quality was increased to cater for these needs and in what ways the participant benefited from the aquatic program. This qualitative investigation aims to shed light onto how aquatic therapy has affected the boy with DMD physically, psychologically, and socially from the parents' perspectives. The results revealed that aquatic thera-py had beneficial effects on the participant with DMD in terms of social-ization, relaxation, quality of life and self-perception.