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Published on: April 19, 2017
Reaching skills in six-month-old infants at environmental and biological risk
Liz Araújo Rohr1, Thais Invenção Cabral2, Murilo Mageste de Moraes1
1Department of Physical Therapy, Federal University of São Carlos, São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.
Insights
Infants with low socioeconomic status show less functional reaching skills than very preterm infants. Environmental risk factors, like socioeconomic status, may impact infant reaching more than biological risks.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Motor Control
- Infant Development
Background:
- Assessing infant reaching is crucial for early detection of developmental delays.
- Understanding the impact of biological and environmental risk factors on motor development is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate kinematic parameters and reaching adjustments in infants at biological or environmental risk.
- To compare reaching performance between at-risk infants and healthy full-term infants.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving 62 six-month-old infants.
- Three groups: no risk factor (NRF), low socioeconomic status (LSES), and very preterm (VPT).
- Infants reached for an object in a reclined position.
Main Results:
- LSES infants had significantly longer reaching duration and more movement units than VPT infants.
- Horizontal hand orientation was associated with environmental risk (Cramer's V = 0.30).
Conclusions:
- Low socioeconomic status negatively impacts infant reaching skills more than very preterm birth.
- Early identification of reaching delays is vital, necessitating cost-effective public health strategies.
Objectives:
To assess kinematic parameters and proximal and distal reaching adjustments of infants at biological or environmental risk and compare with reaching performance of six-month-old full-term infants without known risk factors.
Methods:
This blinded cross-sectional study included 62 infants at six months of age divided into three independent groups: Group with no known risk factor (NRF), 28 full-terms with no risk factors; Low SES group (LSES):19 full-terms classified as low socioeconomic status and no biological risk; Very preterm group (VPT), 15 very preterm infants at six months corrected age and no environmental risk. Infants were placed in a reclined baby chair at 45°, and a malleable and unfamiliar object was presented to the infant at 5-second intervals to elicit reaching movements.
Results:
Infants from LSES presented reaching duration (p = 0.032, Cohen's f = 0.349) and movement unit (p = 0.033, Cohen's f = 0.351) significantly higher than VPT group. Horizontal hand orientation was moderately associated with infants at environmental risk (p = 0.031; Cramer's V = 0.30).
Conclusion:
Infants of low socioeconomic status perform less functional reaching movements than very preterm infants at six months corrected age. Socioeconomic status may impact more on reaching skills than biological risk. Given the importance of reaching for infant development, low-cost public health strategies are needed to identify possible delays.
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