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Published on: May 2, 2021
Kinematic characteristics of reaching movements in preterm children with cerebral palsy
Jolanda C van der Heide1, Johanna M Fock, Bert Otten
1Department of Neurology, University of Groningen, 9713 GZ Groningen, The Netherlands.
Insights
Children with cerebral palsy (CP) exhibit poorer dominant arm reaching movements compared to typically developing peers, especially those with bilateral CP. Movement quality correlates with lesion severity and motor impairment.
Area of Science:
- Developmental neuroscience
- Pediatric motor control
- Rehabilitation science
Background:
- Cerebral palsy (CP) significantly impacts motor development in children.
- Reaching movements are crucial for daily activities and functional independence.
- Understanding upper extremity kinematics in children with CP is vital for targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess and compare the kinematic characteristics of dominant arm reaching movements in children with CP versus typically developing children.
- To investigate the relationship between reaching movement quality and clinical/neurological factors in children with CP.
Main Methods:
- Kinematic analysis of dominant arm reaching movements.
- Study included 51 children (2-11 years) with CP (spastic hemiplegia and bilateral CP) and 29 typically developing controls.
- Assessment correlated movement quality with neonatal brain ultrasound findings, motor disorder severity, spasticity, and daily living activities.
Main Results:
- Children with CP demonstrated significantly impaired dominant arm reaching quality compared to controls.
- Children with bilateral CP showed particularly poorer movement quality.
- Impaired reaching involved longer movement duration and fewer single movement units.
- Movement quality was associated with lesion severity, motor disorder severity, spasticity, and functional ability.
Conclusions:
- Dominant arm reaching movements are significantly affected in children with CP, particularly in bilateral CP cases.
- The quality of reaching movements is linked to underlying brain injury severity and overall motor function.
- Clinical attention to dominant arm movements in children with CP is warranted due to their impact on daily life activities.
Abstract:
Kinematic characteristics of reaching movements of the dominant arm were assessed in 51 sitting preterm children who were aged 2-11 y and had cerebral palsy (CP), including 33 with spastic hemiplegia and 18 with bilateral CP (Bi-CP). Reference data of 29 typically developing children were present. The results indicated that the quality of reaching movements from the dominant arm of children with CP was significantly worse than that of typically developing children. This held true in particular for the children with Bi-CP. For example, reaching movements of children with CP took more time and consisted less often of one movement unit. The quality of reaching was related to the severity of lesion present on the neonatal ultrasound scan of the brain, the severity of motor disorder, the degree of spasticity, and the ability to perform activities of daily life. The last indicates that movements of the dominant arm in children with spastic hemiplegia and Bi-CP deserve clinical attention.
