Developmental coordination disorders and sensory processing and integration: Incidence, associations and...

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Occupational Therapy
• Developmental Psychology
• Neuroscience

Background:

• Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and sensory processing and integration (SPI) difficulties present significant challenges to children's daily participation.
• The co-occurrence of DCD and SPI difficulties has not been previously investigated.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the co-occurrence of DCD and SPI difficulties in children aged 5-12 years.
• To examine the relationship between motor coordination and SPI in children diagnosed with DCD.

Main Methods:

• Utilized records of 93 children (5-12 years) diagnosed with DCD according to DSM-V criteria.
• Assessed motor skills using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children - 2.
• Evaluated sensory processing and integration using the Sensory Processing Measure.

Main Results:

• 88% of children with DCD exhibited some or definite SPI differences.
• No direct relationship was found between motor coordination and SPI levels.
• Common difficulties included social participation, hearing, body awareness, balance, motion, and ideation.
• Children with co-occurring autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) showed heightened difficulties with touch and vision.

Conclusions:

• The majority of children with DCD experience SPI difficulties that affect their daily activities.
• Significant differences in SPI challenges were noted between children with and without co-morbid ASD.