Quality of Spontaneous General Movements in Full-Term Small for Gestational Age and Appropriate for Gestational Age Newborn Infants

V. H. J. M. van Kranen-Mastenbroek; H. Kingma; H. B. Caberg; A. Ghys; C. E. Blanco; T. H. M. Hasaart; J. S. H. Vles

doi:10.1055/s-2008-1073013

Neuropediatrics 1994; 25(3): 145-153
DOI: 10.1055/s-2008-1073013

Original article

Quality of Spontaneous General Movements in Full-Term Small for Gestational Age and Appropriate for Gestational Age Newborn Infants

V. H. J. M. van Kranen-Mastenbroek¹ , H. Kingma² , H. B. Caberg⁵ , A. Ghys⁴ , C. E. Blanco⁵ , T. H. M. Hasaart⁶ , J. S. H. Vles⁷

¹Department of Child Neurology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
²Department of ENT, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
³Department of Neurophysiology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
⁴Department of Medical Psychology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
⁵Department of Neonatology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
⁶Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands
⁷Department of Child Neurology, University Hospital Maastricht, University of Limburg, The Netherlands

Abstract

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Abstract

Quality of spontaneous movements was studied in 15 healthy full-term appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and in 15 full-term small-for gestational age (SGA) newborn infants. All general movements with a minimal duration of 20 seconds were judged on different aspects of movement quality From the general movements in each group (AGA: n = 106; SGA: n = 187), dominant patterns were isolated.

In the AGA Group 3 dominant patterns of general movements were present. In the SGA Group 5 dominant patterns of general movements were found. Three of those were identical to the movement patterns in the AGA group, the remaining two patterns were unique for the SGA infants.

Our results indicate that the three different types of general movements which constitute the major part of the normal repertoire of healthy full-term infants can be used as a reference for normal spontaneous motor behaviour. The two different types of general movements in the SGA infants might be used to discriminate between healthy and neurologically suspect newborn infants. The difference in movement pattern between AGA and SGA infants might be explained by the effect of intrauterine malnutrition on CNS development.

Key words

Quality of movement - Small for gestational age infants - Full-term infants - Intrauterine growth retardation

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