Early motor development: risk factors for delay in a population study in Southern Brazil

• Published in: Revista de saúde pública 2023-01, Vol.57 (1), p.59-59
• Main Authors: Zago, Ana Carolina, Trettim, Jéssica Puchalski, Rubin, Bárbara Borges, Scholl, Carolina Coelho, Coelho, Fernanda Teixeira, Ulguim, Fernanda, Pinheiro, Luísa Mendonça de Souza, Matos, Mariana Bonati de, Pinheiro, Ricardo Tavares, Quevedo, Luciana de Avila
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cesarean Section; Child Development; Health Policy & Services; Infant, Low Birth Weight; Original
• ISSN: 0034-8910; 1518-8787; 1518-8787
• DOI: 10.11606/s1518-8787.2023057004991

OBJECTIVE: To assess risk factors associated with motor development delay at three months of age. METHODS: Cross-sectional study with mothers and their three-month-old babies in Southern Brazil. The Bayley-III Scale of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID-III) and the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS) were used to assess motor development. RESULTS: We evaluated 756 mothers and their three-month-old babies. The overall mean motor development assessed by the BSID-III and the AIMS was 104.7 (SD 13.5) and 55.4 (SD 25.4), respectively. When assessed by the BSID-III, the lowest motor development scores were among babies born by cesarean delivery (p = 0.002), prematurely (p < 0.001), and with low birth weight (p < 0.001). When assessed by the AIMS, babies born prematurely (p = 0.002) and with low birth weight (p=0.004) had the lowest motor development means. After a cluster analysis, we found that babies born by cesarean delivery, with low birth weight, and prematurely had more impaired motor development compared with children born without any risk factors. CONCLUSION: Identifying risk factors allows the implementation of early interventions to prevent motor development delay and, therefore, reduce the probability of other future problems.