Gross motor development in preterms

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It should be no surprise that a population of preterm infants will score lower on an assessment of gross motor assessment over the first 2 years of life than do term infants. When groups of preterms are compared to term infants at a single age for most any neurodevelopmental assessment, they do not perform as well as term infants. van Haastert et al report the trajectory of 800 preterms for gross neurodevelopment for the first 18 months of life. They then compare the developmental curve for the preterms with term infants and demonstrate that the curve is different but approaches the normal curve by 18 months. If assessments at earlier ages were used, then many infants assessed as abnormal might be referred for special assessments, although they may be on the “normal curve” for a special population—preterm infants. The study makes the point that neurodevelopmental progression with age may differ with different populations—complicating the definition of normal and who might benefit from targeted interventions.