Down syndrome

Videos Compass Chair
A Rifton Compass Chair on a wood floor.
Over the past few years, we've had many requests for a simple chair for mildly involved students, for students with autism spectrum disorder, and we decided to redesign the Compass Chair.
PT/OT New Webinar on Motor Learning April 17, 2018 by Lori Potts, PT
A young teenager standing in a Rifton Pacer Gait Trainer doing and activity with a caregiver.
On April 12, we hosted a webinar, Progressive Gait Training: Motor Learning Strategies and the Research, discussing motor skill acquisition through practice, feedback and prompt reduction. It concluded with a demonstration of the Rifton Pacer and tips for therapeutic and functional use of the Pacer emphasizing the benefits of dynamic support and the reduction of physical assistance to increase...
News The Great Bike Giveaway February 06, 2018 by Lori Potts, PT
Teenage boy on a Rifton Adaptive Trike
With spring in the air we’re talking bikes today – or rather, adaptive tricycles. Kids with disabilities want to ride just as much as any child, and with a little bit of extra support they too can navigate those inviting sidewalks. Sadly, adaptive trikes are far too rarely covered by Medicaid or insurance, even with a strong case for the therapeutic benefits of cycling...
Tips & Advice Lifespan Care for People with Disabilities May 23, 2017 by Elena Noble, MPT
resources adults developmental disabilities
Providing activity and mobility interventions for young adults with disabilities after they leave the school system is important, particularly for maintaining quality of life. Unfortunately this outlook is not shared by everyone. A physical therapist working with young adults with developmental disabilities wrote this to me after her efforts to get adaptive equipment for her clients had been...
News A Great Book for a New School Year August 05, 2016 by Elena Noble, MPT
In this image from the children's book Prince Noah and the School Pirates, a child with Down syndrome hugs a model ship.
Prince Noah is back in time for the start of a new school year. His second appearance on our blog heralds the sequel to the well-loved fairy tale The Prince Who Was Just Himself, a story about a child with Down syndrome unwittingly disarming a palace enemy through natural gifts of compassion and curiosity. In the delightfully written Prince Noah and the School Pirates, Noah continues to be himself...
PT/OT Studying Neurodevelopmental Disorders with the Rifton Activity Chair November 12, 2015 by Elena Noble, MPT
A girl sits in the activity chair for neurodevelopmental disorders therapy studies
From school classrooms to radiology departments to hospital feeding clinics, the Rifton Activity Chair meets a range of positioning needs in a variety of environments. Recently we learned of yet another clinical setting where the Activity Chair has found a niche: in the study of neurodevelopmental disorders at the UC Davis MIND Institute, an internationally respected research facility. Here, the...
News Everyone is Unique. Really? September 01, 2015 by Carmen Hinkey
In this drawing from the book, The Prince Who Was Just Himself, the King and Queen hug with loving acceptance their baby with Down syndrome why his siblings hold his hands.
Next month brings us to National Down Syndrome Awareness Month. The industry news is full of inspirational stories of how children and adults with Down syndrome have enriched the lives of their families, peer groups, communities, and a wider acceptance of those with a third copy of the twenty-first chromosome. The entertainment and fashion industries have done a great deal to further this effort...
News The "Adverse Birth Outcome" February 10, 2015 by Carmen Hinkey
A young boy with disabilities looks up at the sky with a big smile
I didn’t know Henry until this morning, but he’s been in my mind all day thanks to what his mother shared so honestly about having him. In case any of us need reminding, the Washington Post carried her beautiful reminder that they are children first, their potential to learn and meet milestones far more important than their disabilities.  And she takes it even farther: She is &ldquo...
Stories Down Syndrome in Ancient Art October 22, 2013 by Erna Albertz
A detail of the painting "The Adoration of the Christ Child."
Image copyright ©The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Image source: Art Resource, NY In preparing for a presentation on disability history I gave two weeks ago to Ministry of Health and Social Service officials in Russia, I stumbled across the research of John M. Starbuck, who examined the depiction of people with Down syndrome in ancient and medieval art. His entire paper is worth looking at but one item...
News World Down Syndrome Day March 19, 2013 by Erna Albertz
worlddownsyndromedayfeature
March 21st 2012 was the first celebration of World Down Syndrome Day. Only recently marked on the calendar by the General Assembly of the United Nations, this day is designated for raising public awareness for Down syndrome. The actual date (3/21) was not pulled out of mid-air, but has significance. It represents the triplication of the 21st chromosome which characterizes the condition. There are some...
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