Head control acquisition in preterm and fulhterm infants

Abstract

A stable postural control is the basis for the organisation and voluntary execution of movements. In infants this control is shown by the development of motor abilities such as head control. Premature deliveries may generate risks to a child, such as lesions to the central nervous system, especially in the regions responsible for voluntary motricity. This study aimed at comparing the development of head control acquisition between preterm and full-term infants at the age of 2 and 4 months (preterm infant ages being corrected). Video recordings of five infants born prematurely and 5 born at term were analysed, within the Motor Development Follow-up Program For Preterm Born Children, maintained by the Department of Physical Therapy at the Londrina State University School Hospital. The items related to the development of head control included in the Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM) were used in the evaluation. Although scores obtained by preterm and fullterm infants differed, the differences were found not to be statistically significant, thus suggesting that premature birth does not represent a risk for the final acquisition of head control. Despite the slightly late development in the acquisition of head control observed in preterm infants, both groups had similar scores at the age of four months.