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Prehension movements and motor development in children

J P Kuhtz-Buschbeck1, A Boczek-Funcke, M Illert

  • 1Department of Physiology, University of Kiel, Olshausenstrasse 40, D-24098 Kiel, Germany, kuhtz@physiologie.uni-kiel.de

Experimental Brain Research
|September 4, 1999
PubMed

Insights

Sensorimotor function maturation in children shows age-related improvements in dexterity and movement speed. However, different motor skill tests do not consistently correlate, indicating no single pathway for sensorimotor development.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental neuroscience
  • Motor control
  • Human kinetics

Background:

  • Manual dexterity and sensorimotor functions undergo significant development from childhood to adulthood.
  • Understanding these developmental trajectories is crucial for identifying potential developmental delays or disorders.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess the maturation of manual dexterity and sensorimotor functions in healthy children (4-5 years) and adults.
  • To analyze kinematic aspects of reaching, grasping, bimanual tasks, and repetitive tapping.
  • To evaluate a comprehensive motor function score (MOT) for agility and balance.

Main Methods:

  • Behavioral tests including reaching and grasping kinematics, a bimanual coordination task, and fast repetitive tapping.
  • Kinematic analysis of movement trajectories and grip aperture.
  • Administration of a comprehensive motor function score (MOT) assessing agility and balance.

Main Results:

  • Reaching trajectories became straighter with age.
  • Children exhibited wider grip apertures than adults, suggesting a higher safety margin.
  • Movement speed in tapping and bimanual tasks increased with age, as did MOT scores.

Conclusions:

  • While various behavioral tests indicate maturational changes in sensorimotor functions, results across different tasks were largely uncorrelated.
  • This suggests that sensorimotor development is multifaceted, with no single measure fully predicting performance across all motor skills.

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