Spontaneous Leg Movements Measured by Wearable Sensors in Infancy Differentiate Later Risk for Cerebral Palsy

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Neurology
• Developmental Pediatrics
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Infants with perinatal brain injuries are at risk for cerebral palsy (CP).
• Early detection of CP risk is crucial for timely intervention.
• Spontaneous motor activity may indicate neurological status.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if early spontaneous leg movements differentiate CP risk in infants with perinatal brain injury.
• To assess the utility of wearable sensors in characterizing infant leg movements.
• To correlate leg movement parameters with CP risk status.

Main Methods:

• Infants at risk for CP were classified as high-risk (n=33) or not high-risk (n=21) at 4 months using established assessments.
• Wearable inertial sensors on ankles recorded leg movement data from 1 to 4 months.
• Kinematic parameters including movement frequency, acceleration, duration, and entropy were analyzed using mixed-effects models.

Main Results:

• High-risk infants exhibited significantly fewer leg movements per hour awake (P=0.0322).
• High-risk infants had a significantly shorter median leg movement duration (P=0.0023).
• These findings suggest movement patterns differ based on CP risk.

Conclusions:

• Wearable sensors effectively capture infant spontaneous movements in natural settings.
• Characterizing leg movements offers potential for early CP risk identification.
• This approach may guide early intervention and specialist follow-up for infants at risk of CP.