Characterization of motor development in infants of adolescent mothers

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize the motor development and environmental opportunities of infants of adolescent mothers, as well as to compare the motor development of infants living with grandparents with that of the infants who live only with their parents. The study included 17 infants of adolescent mothers. The instruments used were a questionnaire containing information on the infant and mother, the Affordance in the Home Environment for Motor Development - Infant Scale (AHEMD-IS) and the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and by means of Pearson test and Mann-Whitney U-test, considering p<0.05 as statistically significant. The results showed that the majority of infants born to adolescent mothers (58.82%) had normal motor development, and in the comparison between the groups, significant difference was observed in the motor performance of children living with grandparents. Regarding environmental opportunities analyzed by means of AHEMD-IS, all households had low opportunity for motor development. In conclusion, although most children have normal motor development, it is important to emphasize that development has multifactorial influences resulting from intrinsic and extrinsic factors. A longitudinal follow-up of children of teenage mothers is needed to understand the outcome of the motor development of these infants.