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Visual-motor function of very low birth weight and full-term children at 3 1/2 to 4 years of age
G Liebhardt1, D Sontheimer, O Linderkamp
1Department of Paediatrics, University of Carl Gustav Carus Dresden, Germany.
Insights
Very low birth weight (VLBW) children often show deficits in visual-motor skills compared to full-term peers. Early screening for these challenges is crucial for timely educational support.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Psychology
- Neuroscience
Background:
- Advances in perinatal care improve survival rates for very low birth weight (VLBW) infants.
- A significant percentage of VLBW children experience later school problems, necessitating special education.
- Neurologically normal infancy assessment does not preclude later learning difficulties in VLBW children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess visual-motor deficits in VLBW children compared to healthy full-term infants.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a short screening test for visual-motor skills in VLBW children.
- To identify factors influencing visual-motor performance in VLBW children.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 40 VLBW children and 83 full-term controls (ages 3-4) were evaluated.
- A brief test battery assessed visual-motor skills, including shape copying, cutting, model building, color recognition, concentration, and cooperation.
- Perinatal history, neurological status at one year, nursery school attendance, and social factors were considered.
Main Results:
- VLBW children scored significantly lower than full-term peers in shape copying, cutting, model building, and overall concentration/cooperation.
- Nursery school attendance was associated with significantly better test results.
- Social factors and age had a greater impact on test outcomes than perinatal factors.
Conclusions:
- VLBW children exhibit widespread visual-motor skill deficits compared to their full-term counterparts.
- The developed test battery is a valuable tool for screening visual-motor deficits in VLBW children.
- Early identification of these deficits is essential for targeted interventions and improved educational outcomes.
Abstract:
Improvements in perinatal and neonatal management have not only led to a higher survival rate of very low birth weight infants (VLBW; < or = 1,500 g or < 32 weeks gestational age), but also to a better outcome of these children. However the percentage of VLBW children who need special education because of later school problems remains high even in children considered neurologically normal during infancy. We assessed 40 VLBW children and 83 healthy full-term children at age 3 to 4 years by means of a simple and short test for visual-motor deficits. The test included the copying and cutting-out of geometric shapes, the building of models, the recognition of colours and the observation of the concentration and cooperation during the test. All VLBW children had had a good perinatal outcome and had been considered neurologically normal at one year of age. Most VLBW children scored within 1 standard deviation (S.D.) of the test mean, but on average the VLBW children scored significantly lower than the full-term infants in the copying of figures, the cutting-out of geometric forms, the building of models and in the overall concentration and cooperation during the test. Children who attended a nursery school achieved significantly better test results. Girls tended to have better results, but this was not statistically significant. Social factors and age had a significantly greater impact on results than perinatal factors. In summary, VLBW children scored significantly less in almost every test item compared to their term peers. Our test battery could serve as a short introductory test to screen for deficits in visual-motor skills, especially in VLBW children.