Reham A.A. Abouelkheir
Qassim University, Saudi Arabia
Title: Motor development evaluation of low risk preterm infants through the first six months of life
Biography
Biography: Reham A.A. Abouelkheir
Abstract
Statement of the Problem: Pre-term and low birth weight children are at risk for developmental deficits, many pre-term children even who do not develop cerebral palsy not having reached normal motor development level regarding their chronological age. Researchers have reported that recently neonatal care Improved which have increased the survival of premature babies. Normal motor development starts at conception and continues throughout life according to a typical sequence, pattern, and timing. Evaluation and early detection of developmental deviation in pre-term infants will improve the concept of early intervention and result in better quality of life to the pre-term infants and their families.
Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: A longitudinal, quantitative, comparative study-one hundred infants: Pre-term and full-term infants were evaluated through the first 6 months of life. They were classified into two groups: (Group A) contained fifty pre-terms, (Group B) contained fifty full-term, infants were evaluated by Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS).
Findings: The parents in this study were very cooperative. There was a significant difference in mean values AIMS of pre-term and full-term newborns and there was a significant difference in mean values AIMS of pre-term and full-term infants after six-month.
Conclusion & Significance: Low-risk pre-term infant had non-optimal motor development in comparison with full-term infants. Recommendations are made for further studies to assess motor development in pre-term using corrected age and motor development assessment in pre-term infants should be done periodically