Handwriting, visuomotor integration, and neurological condition at school age

• Published in: Developmental medicine and child neurology 2010-10, Vol.52 (10), p.941-947
• Main Authors: VAN HOORN, JESSIKA F, MAATHUIS, CAREL GB, PETERS, LIEKE HJ, HADDERS‐ALGRA, MIJNA
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Behavior Disorders; Cerebral Palsy; Child; Children; Confounding Factors (Epidemiology); Coordination; Early Adolescents; Education, Special; Female; Handwriting; Humans; Interrater Reliability; Learning Disabilities; Logistic Models; Mainstreaming; Male; Motor Skills; Nervous System Diseases - diagnosis; Nervous System Diseases - physiopathology; Netherlands; Neurologic Examination; Neurological Impairments; Neurological Organization; Physical Disabilities; Psychometrics; Psychomotor Performance; Psychomotor Skills; Puberty; Schools; Sensory Integration; Severity (of Disability); Severity of Illness Index; Special Education; Special Schools; Visual Impairments; Visual Perception; Writing Instruction; Writing Skills
• ISSN: 0012-1622; 1469-8749
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8749.2010.03715.x

Aim  The study investigated the relationships between handwriting, visuomotor integration, and neurological condition. We paid particular attention to the presence of minor neurological dysfunction (MND). Method  Participants were 200 children (131 males, 69 females; age range 8–13y) of whom 118 received mainstream education (mean age 10y 5mo, SD 1y 4mo) and 82 special education (mean age 10y 8mo, SD 1y 2mo). Each child had four assessments: a neurological examination, which paid attention to the type and severity of MND, a test to measure motor performance, a handwriting test, and the Developmental Test of Visual Motor Integration. Results  Dysgraphic handwriting and slow writing speed were closely related to the severity of neurological dysfunction (both p