Related Experiment Videos
Laterality of finger movements in preterm infants
Insights
Preterm infants show a right-sided head position preference. This head turning is linked to coordinated finger movements, suggesting early-developed motor asymmetries in infants.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal development
- Developmental neuroscience
- Motor control
Background:
- Preterm infants exhibit unique developmental trajectories compared to full-term infants.
- Understanding early motor behaviors is crucial for assessing neurological development.
- Laterality, or the preference for using one side of the body, emerges early in development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the laterality of head position and spontaneous movements in preterm infants.
- To explore the association between head position preference and hand movements.
- To determine if asymmetries in motor coordination are present before birth.
Main Methods:
- Study included low-risk preterm infants aged 31 to <37 weeks postconceptional age.
- Observed and recorded head position (laterality).
- Analyzed spontaneous finger movements, hand-face contact, and hand-mouth contact, noting laterality.
Main Results:
- Preterm infants predominantly turned their heads to the right.
- Hand-mouth contact was more frequent on the right, aligning with head position.
- Increased right-sided hand movements were observed, including those contralateral to head turn direction.
Conclusions:
- A spontaneous head position preference is evident in preterm infants before birth.
- This preference is associated with asymmetrical and coordinated finger movements.
- Findings indicate early-onset motor asymmetries in preterm infants.
Abstract:
The laterality of head position, spontaneous finger movements, hand-face contact, and hand-mouth contact was studied in low-risk preterm infants of 31 to < 37 weeks postconceptional age (intrauterine + neonatal period at time of study). The head was predominantly turned towards the right side during the preterm period. Hand-mouth contact was more frequent on the right side and coincided well with the side to which the head was turned. Other hand movements, too, were more frequent on the right side than on the left, but these were also seen in the fingers contralateral to the direction in which the head was turned. These findings suggest that even before birth a spontaneous preference for head position is present and is already associated with asymmetry in coordinated finger movements.