[Comparison of preschool children's performance using the Denver developmental test, before and after nutritional...

Psychomotor and development analysis must be emphasized when studying institutionalized children. Many previous investigations have been showing deleterious effects of day care centers over developmental performance in children.

This study is aimed at comparing the performance in the Development Screening Test (Denver) in children attending day care centers, before and after nutritional intervention with an energetic supplement enriched with iron.

130 children from 2 to 6 years old, attending three municipal day care centers, were evaluated by means of the application of the Denver test; by trained psychologists, comparing the collected data according to sex and age group, before and after six months intervention with iron enriched protein energetic supplement.

Most of the children had normal performance, both in first application (70.80%), and in the second one (80.80%). When comparing these results, 76.92% of the children had not altered their performance and 18.46% improved it substantially. As to sex, no significant differences were found and as to age group, there was significant improvement among children aged 4 to 6 years of age.

Besides the nutritional aspects, factors such as learning readiness, family organization, and psychopedagogic orientation to the day care centers, must have fostered development, even if the low socioeconomic level of the studied population is considered.