Neural Basis and Motor Imagery Intervention Methodology Based on Neuroimaging Studies in Children With Developmental Coordination Disorders: A Review

Prevalence and associated factors of developmental coordination disorder in primary school children

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is one of the most frequently observed movement disorders in childhood, yet data on its prevalence are still unclear. This two-stage epidemiological study aims to determine the prevalence of DCD in children between 6 and 10 years of age according to the diagnostic criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5). In the first stage, the Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire (DCDQ'07) were given to primary school students. In the second stage, clinicians conducted psychiatric interviews with children who had an indication of DCD or were suspected of having DCD according to the DCDQ'07 and their parents. The interviews utilized the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for DCD and applied the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Present and Lifetime Version-Turkish Adaptation (K-SADS-PL) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-R) to identify co-occurring disorders. In the first stage, 2,306 children were evaluated, and 205 were invited for a clinical interview. Of the 198 children interviewed, 49 met the diagnostic criteria for DCD. The prevalence of DCD in Türkiye was found to be 2.1%. High parental education level, a previous psychiatric admission of the child, mother's postpartum depressive symptoms, co-occurring disorders, and co-occurring attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were significantly more common among children with DCD. Potentially associated factors were evaluated by logistic regression analysis. The mother's education level, the presence of postpartum depressive symptoms, and co-occurring disorders in the child were found to be associated factors.

Investigating Subtypes of Motor Skills and Activities of Daily Living among Young Children with Motor Delay

The purpose of this study was to classify preschool children into subtypes based on motor skills and to characterize the activities of daily living for each subtype. The subjects were 45 preschool children whose scores on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC-2) and the Functional Independence Measure for Children (WeeFIM) were measured. The fine score and gross score were calculated from the MABC-2, and a cluster analysis was performed. The difference between the fine score and the gross score was evaluated for each subtype, and multiple comparisons among subtypes were performed for the fine, gross, and WeeFIM scores. Subtype analysis showed that the fine score was significantly lower than the gross score for subtype I (p < 0.001), and the gross score was significantly lower than the fine score for subtype III (p = 0.018). Subtype II had a significantly lower score than subtype I and subtype III (p < 0.001). Children with subtype II had more difficulty dressing movements and less communication skills than subtype III (p < 0.05). Classification into three subtypes according to motor ability and some of the characteristics of ADLs were identified.

Insights on action observation and imitation abilities in children with Developmental Coordination Disorder and typically developing children

BACKGROUND

Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) face difficulties in motor learning. Action observation and imitation are strategies frequently used to teach motor skills.

AIMS

(1) To study action observation and imitation abilities in children with DCD compared with typically developing peers with a new protocol. (2) To gain insights in the relation between action observation, imitation, motor performance and activities of daily living (ADL).

METHOD

Twenty-one children with DCD (mean age 7 years 9 months, range 6-10 years) and 20 age-matched controls (mean age 7 years 8 months, range 6-10 years) were included. A newly developed protocol was used for testing action observation and imitation proficiency. Motor performance were evaluated with the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2. ADL were investigated with DCD Questionnaire'07.

RESULTS

Children with DCD presented significantly lower action observation (p = .037) and imitation abilities (p < .001) than peers. Worse action observation and imitation abilities were related to lower motor performance and ADL skills and a younger age. Non-meaningful gestures imitation proficiency had predictive value for global motor performance (p = .009), manual dexterity (p = .02) and ADL (p = .004).

CONCLUSIONS

The new protocol for action observation and imitation abilities can be helpful for detecting motor learning difficulties and for delineating new opportunities for motor teaching approaches in children with DCD.

Combined action observation and motor imagery improves learning of activities of daily living in children with Developmental Coordination Disorder

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is characterised by poor motor coordination, which interferes with the ability to execute activities of daily living (ADLs). Combined action observation and motor imagery (AOMI) involves observing movement videos whilst imagining simultaneously the sensations of executing the same movement. Laboratory-based research indicates that AOMI can help improve movement coordination in children with DCD, but no previous research had investigated the efficacy of AOMI interventions for learning ADLs. This study investigated the efficacy of a home-based, parent-led, AOMI intervention for learning ADLs in children with DCD. Children with confirmed (n = 23) or suspected (n = 5) DCD (total sample n = 28), aged 7-12 years, were assigned to either an AOMI intervention or a control intervention (both n = 14). Participants attempted the following ADLs at pre-test (week 1), post-test (week 4), and retention test (week 6): shoelace tying, cutlery use, shirt buttoning, and cup stacking. Task completion times and movement techniques were recorded. The AOMI intervention produced significantly faster task completion times than the control intervention at post-test for shoelace tying, and significantly improved movement techniques for shoelace tying and cup stacking. Importantly, for children who could not tie shoelaces at pre-test (n = 9 per group), 89% of those following the AOMI intervention learnt the skill successfully by the end of the study, compared to only 44% of those following the control intervention. The findings indicate that home-based, parent-led, AOMI interventions can aid the learning of complex ADLs in children with DCD, and may be particularly effective for facilitating the learning of motor skills that do not currently exist within these children's motor repertoire.

Bibliometric analysis study on cognitive function in developmental coordination disorder from 2010 to 2022

Objective

To identify the research hotspots on cognitive function in developmental coordination disorder (DCD) in recent years, predict the research frontier and development trend, and provide more perspectives for the study of the DCD population.

Methods

Using CiteSpace and VOSviewer software to draw charts, 1,082 pieces of literature about DCD and cognitive function in the Web of Science core collection database from 2010 to 2022 were visually analyzed.

Results and conclusion

Interest in the cognitive function of DCD has been on the rise in the past 10 years. Over 40 countries and regions, 117 institutions and 200 researchers have participated in the corresponding research, mainly in the United States, and their institutions have published more highly influential results. The hot keywords are DCD, children, attention, working memory, performance, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and the main research hot topics include functional performance, population, cognitive psychology. The research directions include "DCD," "Asperger syndrome," "memory," "infant," "clumsiness," "neurodevelopmental disorder," "occupational therapy," "preschool children," "motor competence," "model," and "online control." Future research should focus on motor imagery and intrinsic models and use more neurophysiological techniques to reveal the cognitive characteristics of children with DCD and develop intervention programs.

Developmental Coordination Disorder and Most Prevalent Comorbidities: A Narrative Review

This narrative review describes, in detail, the relationships between Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) and most prevalent associated comorbidities in their complexity, heterogeneity and multifactoriality. The research has been conducted on the main scientific databases, excluding single case papers. Blurred borders between the different nosographic entities have been described and advances in this field have been highlighted. In this multifaceted framework a specific profiling for co-occurring DCD, ADHD and ASD signs and symptoms is proposed, confirming the need for a multidisciplinary approach to define new diagnostic paradigms in early childhood.

Pediatric care for children with Developmental Coordination Disorder, can we do better?

This paper adopts a method of narrative critical review based on a non-systematic search of the literature to provide insights into the trends of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) treatment and to point out some future alternative approaches to prevent secondary health implications in children with DCD. The cause of DCD is unknown, but evidence suggests that these children have atypical brain structure and function. Interventions to help children cope with their activity limitations are effective in improving motor competence and motor skill related fitness in the short term. Although activity-orientated interventions can improve motor outcomes in children with DCD, high quality intervention trials and evaluation of long-term effects are urgently needed. Importantly, motor coordination problems associated with DCD extend to exercise-related activities leading to reduced participation in play and sports, which causes secondary problems in muscular fitness and body composition. Hence, treatment goals should not be limited to the improvement of motor skills (in ADL), but should also focus on health-related quality of life. We therefore propose when noticing motor problems in a child, already before enrolling but also during intervention, to explore ways to adapt everyday physical activities to optimally match the child's skill level. Hence, such activities will not only train the skills and improve physical fitness but will lead to positive engagement, thereby preventing the child from opting out of active play and sports. This provides the child with chances for exercise-dependent learning and will also positively impact social-emotional well-being.