At NAPA Center, we use a variety of evidence-informed electrical stimulation techniques to help children improve movement, strength, coordination, and functional skills. Electrical stimulation uses a small device and adhesive electrodes to deliver gentle electrical impulses to targeted muscles or nerves. These impulses can activate muscles, provide sensory input, and support the brain and body in developing more efficient movement patterns.
What this means for your child
Instead of working muscles in isolation, your child practices functional skills like reaching, grasping, and walking while stimulation helps the right muscles activate at the right time.
FES is used during purposeful activities to help muscles contract at the right time while your child practices real-life movements. FES can improve strength, coordination, endurance, motor control, and sensory feedback while helping reduce the effects of muscle weakness and spasticity. By pairing stimulation with movement, children have more opportunities to practice successful, functional patterns.
TASES combines electrical stimulation with meaningful, goal-directed activities. Rather than stimulating muscles in isolation, TASES is incorporated into functional tasks such as reaching, grasping, walking, or transitioning between positions. This approach helps reinforce the connection between the brain and muscles while promoting motor learning that carries over into everyday activities.
NISE-Stim is an emerging neuromodulation approach that delivers gentle electrical stimulation through electrodes placed on the skin over the spine. Rather than directly stimulating individual muscles, NISE-Stim is designed to influence spinal networks involved in movement, posture, and motor control. When combined with intensive, activity-based therapy, NISE-Stim may help improve muscle activation, coordination, balance, walking, upper extremity function, and overall participation in functional activities.
Electrical stimulation can be incorporated into occupational, physical, and speech therapy sessions and may be used on many areas of the body, including the arms, hands, legs, feet, trunk, face, and spine. Your therapist will recommend the most appropriate type of electrical stimulation based on your child’s individual needs and treatment goals.
For feeding and swallowing, our clinicians may use VitalStim®, a form of neuromuscular electrical stimulation designed for the muscles of the face and throat.
Electrical stimulation uses a small device and adhesive electrodes to deliver gentle electrical impulses to targeted muscles or nerves. These impulses can activate muscles, provide sensory input, and support the brain and body in developing more efficient movement patterns.
Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) is used during purposeful activities to help muscles contract at the right time while your child practices real-life movements. Task-Specific Electrical Stimulation (TASES) builds stimulation into goal-directed tasks such as reaching, grasping, walking, or transitioning between positions, so motor learning carries over into everyday activities.
Non-Invasive Spinal Electrical Stimulation (NISE-Stim) is an emerging neuromodulation approach that delivers gentle stimulation through electrodes placed on the skin over the spine. It is designed to influence the spinal networks involved in movement, posture, and motor control, and it is combined with intensive, activity-based therapy.
Electrical stimulation can be incorporated into occupational, physical, and speech therapy sessions, and it may be used on the arms, hands, legs, feet, trunk, face, and spine.
Your therapist will recommend the most appropriate type of electrical stimulation based on your child’s individual needs and treatment goals. For NISE-Stim, your therapist will also consider your child’s diagnosis and medical history.
NAPA’s US clinics are located in Los Angeles, Boston, Austin, Denver, Chicago, and Charlotte. Services and schedules vary by location, so our team will help you find the clinic that best fits your child’s plan.
Wondering whether FES, TASES, or NISE-Stim could support your child’s goals? Our team can walk you through the options.
or call 888-711-NAPA
