Stability of the Motor Optimality Score Revised (MOS-R) in medically complex infants.
Colleen Peyton1, David Aaby2, Ryan Millman3
1Department of Physical Therapy and Human Movement Sciences, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 645 N Michigan Ave, Suite 1100, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
Early Human Development
|April 14, 2024
Summary
The Motor Optimality Score-Revised (MOS-R) is a stable measure for infants hospitalized in the NICU. However, higher medical complexity in infants may lead to less stable MOS-R scores at certain thresholds.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Development
- Pediatric Neurology
- Clinical Assessment
Background:
- The Motor Optimality Score-Revised (MOS-R) assesses infant spontaneous movement at 3-5 months.
- MOS-R is linked to neurodevelopmental outcomes in medically complex infants.
- The stability of MOS-R scores across different infant developmental ages is not well-established.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the consistency of repeated MOS-R scoring in young infants at different developmental ages.
- To determine if MOS-R scores remain stable when administered at two distinct time points.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study involving 85 infants with a history of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalization.
- Infants were tested twice with the MOS-R: between 12-13 weeks corrected age (CA) and again at 14-16 weeks CA.
- Bland Altman plots assessed score agreement, while Fisher's exact test analyzed changes over time within higher and lower medical complexity groups.
Main Results:
- High agreement was observed between repeated MOS-R scores, with negligible bias (0.058).
- Infants with higher medical complexity were more likely to shift MOS-R score groups at a cut point of 19 (p=0.008).
- This difference in score stability was not significant at MOS-R cut points of 20 or 21.
Conclusions:
- Repeated MOS-R measurements demonstrate stability in infants previously hospitalized in the NICU.
- Infants with higher medical complexity exhibited less stable MOS-R scores at specific thresholds compared to those with lower medical complexity.
