A systematic review of the effects of early intervention on motor development

Abstract

We present a systematic review on the effect of early intervention, starting between birth and a corrected age of 18 months, on motor development in infants at high risk for, or with, developmental motor disorders. Thirty‐four studies fulfilled the selection criteria. Seventeen studies were performed within the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) environment. Eight studies had a high methodological quality. They evaluated various forms of intervention. Results indicated that the Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program (NIDCAP) intervention might have a temporary positive effect on motor development. Twelve of the 17 post‐NICU studies had a high methodological quality. They addressed the effect of neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT) and specific or general developmental programmes. The results showed that intervention in accordance with the principles of NDT does not have a beneficial effect on motor development. They also indicated that specific or general developmental programmes can have a positive effect on motor outcome. We concluded that the type of intervention that might be beneficial for infants at preterm age differs from the type that is effective in infants who have reached at least term age. Preterm infants seem to benefit most from intervention that aims at mimicking the intrauterine environment, such as NIDCAP intervention. After term age, intervention by means of specific or general developmental programmes has a positive effect on motor development.

Do early intervention programmes improve cognitive and motor outcomes for preterm infants after discharge? A systematic review

“…To our knowledge, this is the first reported meta-analysis of early developmental interventions postdischarge from hospital for preterm infants. A recent review 35 explored the effects on motor outcomes of a range of early interventions that commenced from birth to 18 months in infants at risk for, or with, developmental motor disorders. In the Neonatal Individualised Developmental Care Program, interventions that focus on specific motor training were found to have a positive effect on motor outcomes in high-risk infants.…”

Interdisciplinary Approach to Neurocritical Care in the Intensive Care Nursery

“…Early intervention has been shown to improve both cognitive and motor outcomes based on the activation of the plasticity of the brain, which is known to vary with age, and therefore early recognition and referral is essential. 57,58 Communication is key between the neonatal, follow-up clinic, and neurology staff to ensure that proper referrals are made at the time of discharge or at the time neurologic abnormalities are detected or confirmed after discharge to take best advantage of the plasticity window.…”

Editorial

“…Konkrete Beispiele hierf ü r sind die multimodalen Konzepte bei der Behandlung der Zerebralparesen oder der Adipositas, niederschwellige Betreuungs-und F ö rderma ß nahmen bei biologischen und psychosozialen Risikofamilien, z. B. den extrem Fr ü hgeborenen und neue Konzepte in der Diagnostik und Therapie von Sprachentwicklungsst ö rungen, umschriebenen Entwicklungsst ö rungen schulischer F ä higkeiten, Intelligenzminderung, ADHS u. a.m. [1,3,4,8,11] . Von besonderer Bedeutung f ü r die sozialp ä diatrische Forschung war die Ver ö ff entlichung des Kinder-und-Jugendlichen-Gesundheits-Surveys durch das Robert-Koch-Institut, an dem mehrere Sozialp ä diater, u. a. U. Thyen, R. und C. Bergmann lungsauff ä lligkeiten, zur Langzeitprognose von sehr und extrem Fr ü hgeborenen, zur Impfteilnahme, zur Erfassung von Kindesvernachl ä ssigungen und Verhaltensst ö rungen sowie zur transkulturellen P ä diatrie [10] .…”