RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Children with motor delays are at increased risk for delayed means-end problem-solving (MEPS) performance. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate children with motor delays: 1) the impact of motor delay severity and MEPS mastery timing on developmental trajectories of MEPS; and 2) the effectiveness of Sitting Together And Reaching To Play (START-Play) intervention for improving MEPS. METHODS: This represents a secondary analysis from a multi-site randomized controlled trial, with blinded assessors and prospective registration. Children with mild or significant motor delays (n = 112, mean age=10.80, SD=2.59 months at baseline) were randomly assigned to START-Play or usual care early intervention (UC-EI) and assessed at five visits across one year using the Means-End Problem-Solving Assessment Tool that included three 30-second MEPS trials per visit. Task mastery occurred at the first visit the child achieved the highest level of performance in at least two of the three trials. Multilevel analyses evaluated trajectories of MEPS outcomes dependent upon the timing of MEPS mastery, motor delay severity, and intervention group. RESULTS: At baseline, children with mild motor delays demonstrated better MEPS than children with significant delays, but this difference was only observed for children who achieved mastery late. Children with significant delays demonstrated greater improvements in MEPS in the post-intervention phase compared to children with mild delays. No MEPS differences were found between START-Play and UC-EI. CONCLUSION: Motor delay severity and timing of task mastery impacted MEPS trajectories, whereas START-Play intervention did not impact MEPS for children with motor delays. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRY IDENTIFIER: NCT02593825 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02593825).
Assuntos
Transtornos das Habilidades Motoras , Criança , Humanos , Intervenção Educacional Precoce , Resolução de Problemas , Estudos Prospectivos , Estudos Multicêntricos como Assunto , Ensaios Clínicos Controlados Aleatórios como AssuntoRESUMO
BACKGROUND: There is evidence that long-term experience can promote functional changes in infants. However, much remains unknown about how a short-term experience affects performance of a task. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the influence of a single training session at the onset of goal-directed reaching on the spatio-temporal parameters of reaching and whether there are differences in the effects of training across different reaching positions. METHOD: Thirty-three infants were divided into three groups: 1) a control group; 2) a group that was reach trained in a reclined position; and 3) a group trained in the supine position. The infants were submitted to two assessments (pre- and post-training) in two testing positions (supine and reclined at 45°). RESULTS: The short-duration training sessions were effective in promoting shorter reaches in the specific position in which the training was conducted. Training in the reclined position was associated with shorter and faster reaches upon assessment in the reclined position. CONCLUSIONS: A few minutes of reach training are effective in facilitating reaching behavior in infants at the onset of reaching. The improvements in reaching were specific to the position in which the infants were trained.
Assuntos
Postura , Desempenho Psicomotor/fisiologia , Feminino , Humanos , Lactente , Masculino , Análise Espaço-TemporalRESUMO
BACKGROUND: There is evidence that long-term experience can promote functional changes in infants. However, much remains unknown about how a short-term experience affects performance of a task. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate the influence of a single training session at the onset of goal-directed reaching on the spatio-temporal parameters of reaching and whether there are differences in the effects of training across different reaching positions. METHOD: Thirty-three infants were divided into three groups: 1) a control group; 2) a group that was reach trained in a reclined position; and 3) a group trained in the supine position. The infants were submitted to two assessments (pre- and post-training) in two testing positions (supine and reclined at 45°). RESULTS: The short-duration training sessions were effective in promoting shorter reaches in the specific position in which the training was conducted. Training in the reclined position was associated with shorter and faster reaches upon assessment in the reclined position. CONCLUSIONS: A few minutes of reach training are effective in facilitating reaching behavior in infants at the onset of reaching. The improvements in reaching were specific to the position in which the infants were trained. .