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Updated: Jun 26, 2025
Quantified Assessment of Infant's Gross Motor Abilities Using a Multisensor Wearable
Published on: May 17, 2024
Objective measurement of movement variability using wearable sensors predicts ASD outcomes in infants at high
Rujuta B Wilson1, Sitaram Vangala2, Rachel Reetzke3
1UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Insights
Early motor differences in infants with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show lower movement curvature. This novel measure can help predict ASD in toddlers as young as 18 months.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Neurodevelopmental Disorders
- Movement Science
Background:
- Early motor delays are common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
- Identifying early, differentiating motor signs in infants at high risk for ASD and ADHD is crucial for timely intervention.
- Quantitative movement variability analysis offers a promising avenue for detecting subtle motor differences.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a novel quantitative measure of movement variability, termed 'movement curvature,' for differentiating early motor signs.
- To investigate if movement curvature can predict later ASD or ADHD concerns in infants.
- To assess the efficacy of movement curvature in identifying infants with later ASD diagnoses.
Main Methods:
- A wearable triaxial accelerometer was used to collect continuous motion data from infants at high and low likelihood for ASD and ADHD.
- Movement curvature was calculated from motion data at 12, 18, 24, and 36 months of age.
- Participants were categorized into ASD, ADHD concerns, and comparison groups at 36 months, and group differences in movement curvature were analyzed.
Main Results:
- Infants later diagnosed with ASD exhibited significantly lower movement curvature at 18, 24, and 36 months compared to those with ADHD concerns or the comparison group.
- Movement curvature significantly predicted ASD classification at 18, 24, and 36 months (AUC 0.66–0.71).
- When adjusted for high ASD likelihood, movement curvature remained a significant predictor at 18 and 24 months (AUC 0.90).
Conclusions:
- Lower movement curvature may serve as an early motor marker for infants who later receive an ASD diagnosis, detectable as early as 18 months.
- Movement curvature shows potential as a predictive tool for identifying early motor differences associated with ASD.
- This quantitative measure could enhance early identification and intervention strategies for infants at risk for neurodevelopmental disorders.
Abstract:
Early motor delays and differences are common among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Yet, little work has shown whether there are early atypical motor signs that differentiate these groups. Quantitative measures of movement variability hold promise for improving the identification of subtle and specific differences in motor function among infants and toddlers at high likelihood for ASD and ADHD. To this end, we created a novel quantitative measure of movement variability (movement curvature) and conducted a preliminary investigation as to whether this measure improves outcome predictions. We used a wearable triaxial accelerometer to evaluate continuous motion-based activity in infants at high and low likelihood for ASD and ADHD at 12, 18, 24, and 36 months of age. At 36 months, participants were categorized into three outcome groups: ASD (n = 19), ADHD concerns (n = 17), and a comparison group (n = 82). We examined group differences in movement curvature and whether movement curvature is predictive of a later ASD or ADHD concerns classification. We found that movement curvature was significantly lower in infants with later ASD diagnosis at 18, 24, and 36 months of age compared to infants with either ADHD concerns or those in the comparison group. Movement curvature was also a significant predictor of ASD at 18, 24, and 36 months (AUC 0.66-0.71; p = 0.005-0.039) and when adjusting for high ASD likelihood at 18 and 24 months (AUC 0.90, p = 0.05-0.019). These results indicate that lower movement curvature may be a feature of early motor differences in infants with later ASD diagnosis as early as 18 months of age.
