Unimanual and bimanual motor performance in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) provide evidence
Melody N Grohs1,2, Rachel L Hawe3,4, Sean P Dukelow3,4
1Department of Neurosciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada.
Insights
Children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) show motor control deficits in both dominant and non-dominant limbs, with impairments more frequent in the non-dominant limb. Assessments should include both limbs due to performance variability.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Motor Control Research
- Developmental Psychology
Background:
- Understanding of motor control deficits in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) often relies on dominant limb assessments.
- This limits a comprehensive view of motor challenges in DCD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate motor control in both dominant and non-dominant limbs of children with DCD using robotic behavioral tasks.
- To compare motor performance parameters between children with DCD and controls.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving 26 children with DCD and 155 controls.
- Utilized two robotic tasks: visually guided reaching and bimanual object hitting.
- Quantified motor performance across nine parameters, analyzed using ANCOVAs accounting for age.
Main Results:
- Children with DCD exhibited impairments in 6 out of 9 motor performance parameters.
- Deficits were more frequently observed in the non-dominant limb compared to the dominant limb.
- Individual performance analysis revealed that some children with DCD performed within the typical control range, highlighting performance variability.
Conclusions:
- Children with DCD demonstrate motor control deficits affecting both dominant and non-dominant limbs.
- Comprehensive motor assessments should include detailed evaluations of both limbs.
- Motor control performance in DCD is variable, underscoring the need for individualized assessment approaches.
Abstract:
Much of our understanding of motor control deficits in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) comes from upper limb assessments focusing on the dominant limb. Here, using two robotic behavioural tasks, we investigated motor control in both the dominant and non-dominant limbs of children with DCD. Twenty-six children with diagnosed DCD (20 males; mean age 10.6 years ± 1.3 years) and 155 controls were included in this cross-sectional study. Participants completed a visually guided reaching task with their dominant and non-dominant limbs and a bimanual object hitting task. Motor performance was quantified across nine parameters. We determined the number of children with DCD who fell outside of the typical performance range of the controls on these parameters and compared the DCD and control groups using ANCOVAs, accounting for age. Children with DCD demonstrated impairments in six out of nine parameters; deficits were more commonly noted in the non-dominant limb. Interestingly, when looking at individual performance, several children with DCD performed in the range of controls. These findings indicate that children with DCD display deficits in motor control in both the dominant and non-dominant limb and highlight the importance of including detailed assessments of both limbs when investigating children with DCD. They also demonstrate the variability in motor control performance evidenced by children with DCD.
