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Motor development in 3‐month‐old healthy term‐born infants is associated with cognitive and behavioural outcomes at early school age
Author(s) -
Hitzert Marrit M,
Roze Elise,
Van Braeckel Koenraad N J A,
Bos Arend F
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
developmental medicine and child neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.658
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1469-8749
pISSN - 0012-1622
DOI - 10.1111/dmcn.12468
Subject(s) - cognition , psychology , motor skill , odds ratio , confidence interval , physical medicine and rehabilitation , developmental psychology , audiology , medicine , neuroscience
Aim To determine whether motor development at 3 months of age is associated with cognitive, motor, and behavioural outcomes in healthy children at early school age. Method In this cohort study, we included 74 term‐born, healthy children (44 males, 30 females; median gestational age 40.1wks, range 38.0–42.6wks). From video recordings (median 12.9wks, range 9.3–18.6wks), we assessed the quality of fidgety movements, and calculated a motor optimality score. At school age (median 5y 11mo, range 5y 8mo–7y 6mo), we performed detailed cognitive, motor, and behavioural assessments. We examined whether aspects of motor development were associated with functional outcomes. Results An age‐adequate motor repertoire, in particular the presence of antigravity, midline leg, and manipulation movements, was related to poorer cognition, whereas variable finger postures was related to better cognition. Children with a monotonous concurrent motor repertoire had better ball skills but experienced more behavioural problems. The presence of antigravity movements tended to be associated with abnormal recognition (odds ratio [ OR ] 4.4, 95% confidence interval [ CI ], 0.9–21; R 2 =0.17; p =0.070), where the absence of variable finger postures was associated with borderline and abnormal visual‐spatial perception ( OR 20, 95% CI , 1.7–238; R 2 =0.39; p =0.018). Interpretation Detailed aspects of motor development at 3 months of age are associated with cognition and behaviour, but not with motor outcome, in healthy children at early school age. Our findings suggest that early motor development may be the basis for later cognitive and behavioural performance. Since the associations were only moderate, possible environmental influences should be acknowledged.