Coordination Disorder In Children Research Articles

The prevalence of developmental coordination disorder in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

The aim of the study was to synthesize previous evidence and clarify the prevalence of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) in children by meta-analysis. A comprehensive computerized search of databases, including PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, CINAHL, and PsycINFO databases, was conducted to identify relevant national and international articles published before 18 December 2023 on DCD prevalence in children. The meta-analysis of prevalence was conducted using Stata 18.0. A total of 18 papers involving 31,203 patients were included. The prevalence of children with DCD was found to be 5%. A subgroup analysis showed that prevalence was 7% [95% confidence interval (CI) 4%-10%] and 4% (95% CI 3%-7%) for boys and girls, respectively; 4% (95% CI 2%-8%), 2% (95% CI 2%-2%), and 6% (95% CI 3%-10%) in Asia, Europe, and North America, respectively; and 18% (95% CI 8%-31%) and 6% (95% CI 4%-7%) for preterm (<37 weeks) and term infants (≥37 weeks), respectively. The prevalence of very low birth weight children (<1,250 g) with DCD was found to be 31%. In this study, we found that the prevalence of children with DCD in the general population was 5% and that preterm infants (<37 weeks) and very low birth weight infants (<1,250 g) have a higher prevalence of DCD and require early screening and regular follow-up. https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/, Identifier (CRD42024503320).

Advances in Genetics and Epigenetics of Developmental Coordination Disorder in Children

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is a developmental disorder characterized by impaired motor coordination, often co-occurring with attention deficit disorder, autism spectrum disorders, and other psychological and behavioural conditions. The aetiology of DCD is believed to involve brain changes and environmental factors, with genetics also playing a role in its pathogenesis. Recent research has identified several candidate genes and genetic factors associated with motor impairment, including deletions, copy number variations, single nucleotide polymorphisms, and epigenetic modifications. This review provides an overview of the current knowledge in genetic research on DCD, highlighting the importance of continued research into the underlying genetic mechanisms. While evidence suggests a genetic contribution to DCD, the evidence is still in its early stages, and much of the current evidence is based on studies of co-occurring conditions. Further research to better understand the genetic basis of DCD could have important implications for diagnosis, treatment, and our understanding of the condition’s aetiology.

Perinatal risk factors for developmental coordination disorder in children born extremely preterm.

Children born extremely preterm frequently have developmental coordination disorder (DCD). We aimed to evaluate perinatal risk factors for DCD. Swedish national cohort study including 226 children born before 27 gestational weeks without major neurodevelopmental disabilities at 6.5 years. Outcome was DCD, defined as ≤5th percentile on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition. Perinatal risk factors were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression. DCD was present in 84/226 (37.2%) children. Of the risk factors known at 40 weeks gestation, independent and significant risk factors for DCD were: mother's age at delivery (odds ratio [OR] 1.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.07-2.80); pre-eclampsia (2.79, 1.14-6.80); mother born in a non-Nordic country (2.23, 1.00-4.99); gestational age per week increase (0.70, 0.50-0.99) and retinopathy of prematurity (2.48, 1.26-4.87). Of factors known at discharge, postnatal steroids exposure (2.24, 1.13-4.46) and mechanical ventilation (1.76, 1.06-2.09) were independent risk factors when added to the model in separate analyses. The risk of DCD in children born extremely preterm was multifactorial and associated with gestational age largely mediated by ROP, maternal factors, pre-eclampsia, administration of postnatal steroids and mechanical ventilation. These risk factors are common among children born extremely preterm, contributing to their high risk of DCD.

Identifying Developmental Coordination Disorder in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: An Evidence-based Decision Tree Tool for Occupational Therapy Clinicians

ABSTRACT Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may also have undiagnosed developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Prevalence rates of the ADHD/DCD comorbidity are estimated between 30% and 50%. Given the significant impact these disorders have on a child’s occupational performance, lack of detection of DCD is of concern. Occupational therapists play a key role in screening children for the presence of DCD to provide timely and targeted intervention opportunities. However, despite synthesized research and clinical guidelines being available, inconsistency with identification of DCD continues to be reported. Currently, no clear decision-making support tool is available in Australia to aid DCD identification. We aimed to bridge this research-practice gap by developing an evidence-based decision tree tool (ADITA), to guide this identification process. Mapping of assessment and identification processes for DCD was undertaken, in accordance with DSM-5 diagnostic criteria and the European Academy for Childhood Disability (EACD) clinical practice recommendations. A pilot study was conducted to test agreement in identification of DCD between an occupational therapist and pediatrician when the decision tree tool was applied. The ADITA decision tree tool created was trialed with a sample of 19 children with ADHD, aged 8–12 years. Twenty-six percent of participants were assessed as having likely DCD by the occupational therapist, with 21% of ADHD participants subsequently confirmed with DCD by a pediatrician. An agreement rate of 94% was achieved. Preliminary support is provided for the use of ADITA, an evidence-based decision tree tool, to identify DCD in school-aged children with ADHD. The ADITA supports knowledge translation by facilitating implementation of research evidence for DCD, thereby assisting occupational therapists and health professionals to bridge the existing research-practice gap.

Association of the Onset of Self-Feeding With Subsequent Suspected Developmental Coordination Disorder: A Prospective Cohort Study in China.

BackgroundSuccessful self-feeding reflects the readiness of early motor development and environmental impacts, and the onset of self-feeding as a developmental milestone might be a predictor of subsequent motor development in children. In this study, we explored the association between the onset of self-feeding and childhood risk of Developmental Coordination Disorder in children from one-child and two-child families.MethodsWe conducted a data-linkage prospective cohort study from 38 kindergartens in 6 cities in China. A total of 11,727 preschoolers aged 3–6 years old were included in the final analysis and were assessed with the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-second edition (MABC-2) Test. The information on early self-feeding onset was obtained from parents. The mixed and multi-level logistic models utilizing a random intercept were used to investigate the associations between the onset time of self-feeding and subsequent motor performance.ResultsThe results showed that, compared with those beginning self-feeding at or younger than 12 months of age, children starting self-feeding at 13–24, 25–36, and later than 36 months, showed a decrease in their total MABC-2 scores of 2.181, 3.026, and 3.874, respectively; and had an increased risk of suspected DCD by 36.0, 101.6, 102.6%, respectively; they also had 30.2, 46.6, 71.2% increased prevalence of at risk of suspected DCD, when adjusting for both child and family characteristics (each p < 0.05). Significant associations were observed in fine motor, gross motor, and balance subtests (each p < 0.05) in groups with a delayed onset of self-feeding. However, the strength of the associations was mitigated in the fine motor and balance subtests in children with a sibling.ConclusionThe delayed onset time of self-feeding acts as an early behavioral marker for later childhood motor impairment. Moreover, children with a sibling may benefit from additional interaction and their motor developmental pattern may be affected by the presence of a sibling.

(Developmental) Motor Signs: Reconceptualizing a Potential Transdiagnostic Marker of Psychopathological Vulnerability.

Motor signs are increasingly acknowledged as candidate transdiagnostic endophenotypic features in different clinical stages of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia spectrum and mood disorders.1–4 At the same time, motor signs in children and adolescents are widely recognized as proxy features of an altered neurodevelopmental trajectory associated with a higher risk of psychopathological manifestations. These motor abnormalities, spanning from developmental motor delays (eg, sitting, walking) to motor signs (eg, dyscoordination, psychomotor retardation, and psychomotor agitation), presumably reflect complex, cumulative and diachronically stratified interactions between genetic load for severe mental illness and early environmental adversities. Indeed, there is a robust empirical evidence from familial high-risk studies indicating that the genetic risk for schizophrenia is associated with a delayed/altered motor development, whereas comparable evidence for the genetic risk for unipolar and bipolar depression is much less robust. For example, longitudinal studies indicate that impaired motor coordination in offspring of patients with schizophrenia is predictive of subsequent psychosis.5–7 Similarly, the recent Danish VIA78 study found that offspring of parents with schizophrenia (but not those of parents with bipolar disorder) had 2.02 times higher odds of having motor performance in the clinical range at the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (ie, the gold standard for the diagnostic assessment of Developmental Coordination Disorder in children and adolescents). This is partly echoed in preliminary studies based on polygenic risk scores, which showed that the higher is the score for schizophrenia the more severe is the delay in motor development in first years of age,9 a pattern less evident for bipolar score9 and in agreement with the finding of less severe motor signs in the premorbid developmental anamnesis of mood disorders.10

Investigation of clinical features of dysgraphia related to the subtypes of developmental coordination disorder in children regarding high IQ

IntroductionHandwriting disorder is commonly observed in Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) (87-88%) and is often noted in children with high Intellectual Quotient (HIQ).Two mainly pure DCD subtypes: ideomotor-DCD (IM), visuospatial/or visuoconstructional-DCD (VSC) and a mixed subtype (MX) were identified in the literature but nothing is known regarding IQ and dysgraphia.ObjectivesTo refine the specific clinical features of dysgraphia related to DCD subtypes regarding IQ levels.Methods Neurovisual, neuropsychological, neuropsychomotor functions, and handwriting performances of 38 children (6-to-12 years-old: mean 9y, SD 2.7) diagnosed with DCD (DSM-5 criteria) were collected. Two matched groups were analyzed according to their IQ: 19 (TC) typical children (IQ=90-110) and 19 HIQ children (IQ&gt; 120).Results IQ scores were not significantly associated with dysgraphia. There isa significant difference between TC vs HIQ with a lower rate of IM-DCD respectively 11% vs 5% (p=.035) and 68% vs 37% for VSC-DCD (p=.03) but 21% vs 58% in MX-DCD (p=.41). Dysgraphia was significantly more present in TC group with MX-DCD and in HIQ with VSC-DCD. A negative correlation between Kho’s’ cubes test failure (p=.006), visual-spatial memory (p=.05) and VSC-DCD was noted in HIQ group. The deficit of visual spatial memory was significantly related to dysgraphia in HIQ children (p=.01) associated to visual gnosis impairment (p=.03).ConclusionsDysgraphia was significantly found with VSC-DCD subgroup in FIQ&gt;120 with specific features of visual perception disorders suggesting more involvement of the right cortex. These results suggest that VSC-DCD in HIQ could be a neurovisual impairment rather than a pure VSC-DCD.

Shared Features or Co-occurrence? Evaluating Symptoms of Developmental Coordination Disorder in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Motor differences are common in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but rarely evaluated against diagnostic criteria for Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD). We aimed to determine whether motor problems in ASD represent the possible co-occurrence of DCD. We retrospectively reviewed standardized assessments and parent-reports to evaluate motor ability in 43 individuals with ASD against diagnostic criteria for DCD, and compared to 18 individuals with DCD. Over 97% of cases in the ASD group scored below the 16th percentile in motor ability, with most below the 5th percentile. Over 90% of cases in the ASD group met criteria for co-occurring DCD. Motor challenges are a clinically-significant problem in ASD; systematically assessing the prevalence of co-occurring ASD + DCD is necessary to optimize assessment and intervention.

تصور لبرنامج تدريبي مقترح لخفض اضطراب التآزر البصري الحرکي لدى الأطفال ذوي صعوبات التعلم

يهدف هذا البحث إلى تقديم تصور لبرنامج تدريبي مقترح لخفض اضطراب التآزر البصري الحرکي لدى الأطفال ذوي صعوبات التعلم؛ حيث يعاني بعض الأطفال ذوي صعوبات التعلم من قصور في مهارات التآزر البصري الحرکي. ويتکون مجتمع البحث من التلاميذ ذوي صعوبات التعلم بالصف الثالث الابتدائي الملحقين ببرامج التربية الخاصة بمدارس التعليم العام بشمال مدينة الرياض، وسيقوم الباحثان باختيار (20) تلميذا من التلاميذ ذوي صعوبات التعلم الذين يعانون من اضطراب في مهارات التآزر البصري الحرکي، وسيتم تقسيمهم إلى مجموعتين، إحداهما مجموعة تجريبية وتضم (10) تلاميذ، والأخرى مجموعة تجريبية وتضم (10) تلاميذ أيضا. وسيراعي الباحثان أن يکون التلاميذ في کل من المجموعتين متجانسين في العمر الزمني، ودرجة الذکاء، ودرجة الاضطراب في مهارات التآزر البصري الحرکي. وقد قام الباحثان في هذا البحث بإعداد برنامج تدريبي لخفض اضطراب التآزر البصري الحرکي لدى التلاميذ ذوي صعوبات التعلم، والذي يعتمد على مجموعة من الفنيات والأنشطة المختلفة (التعلم بالنموذج والمحاکاة، والتعزيز، والحث والتشجيع، والتکرار، والواجب المنزلي)، والتي تهدف إلى خفض اضطراب التآزر البصري الحرکي لدى الأطفال ذوي صعوبات التعلم الذين تتراوح أعمارهم الزمنية ما بين 8 إلى 10 سنوات. ويحتوي البرنامج على (22) جلسة تدريبية، ويصل زمن کل جلسة إلى (30) دقيقة تقريبا، وعليه يمکن تطبيق البرنامج على مدار فترة زمنية قدرها شهرين، بواقع ثلاث جلسات أسبوعيا. الکلمات المفتاحية: صعوبات التعلم، التآزر البصري الحرکي، برنامج تدريبي. Abstract This research aims to present an outline proposed training program for reducing visuomotor coordination disorder in children with learning disabilities. The research community consists of pupils with learning disabilities in the third primary stage joining special education programs in general education schools in the north of Riyadh. The researchers will select (20) pupils with learning disabilities who suffer from a disorder in the skills of visuomotor coordination, and they will be divided into two groups, one of which is an experimental group that includes (10) pupils, and the other is a control group that includes (10) pupils as well. The researchers will consider that the pupils in each of the two groups are homogeneous in chronological age, intelligence quotient, and degree of the disorder in the skills of visuomotor coordination. The researchers have prepared a training program to reduce the visuomotor coordination disorder among pupils with learning disabilities, which depends on a group of different techniques and activities (modeling and imitation, reinforcement, prompt and encouragement, repetition, and homework), aimed at reducing visuomotor coordination disorder in children with learning disabilities aged 8 to 10. The program contains (22) training sessions, and the duration of each session is approximately (30) minutes. The program can be applied over a period of two months, including 3 sessions per week. Keywords: Learning Disabilities, Visuomotor Coordination, Training Program

Psychometric properties of the qualitative assessment of manual dexterity in the MABC-2 test

Background: The Movement Assessment Battery for Children Test, 2nd edition (MABC-2 test) is a widely accepted standardized method for the assessment of motor competency and identification of developmental coordination disorder in children. However, there are no information on psychometric qualities of the qualitative part of the test.Objective: To reveal possible limitations of the qualitative assessment of the MABC-2 test tasks of the age band 2 (7-10 years), we examined the inter- and intra-rater reliability and construct (known-groups) validity, specifically for observation of the manual dexterity (MD) tasks. Methods: The MD tasks of the MABC-2 executed by children with and without motor difficulties in manual dexterity (MD- and MD+; N = 6) were recorded by a video camera. A group of investigators (N = 9) performed qualitative observational assessment of children's movements from video recordings, in two observation sessions apart by four weeks (time 1, time 2). Results: The statistical tests rejected the hypothesis on significant inter-rater reliability in the number of marked signs in the MD tasks. Regarding the intra-rater reliability, the number of marked signs in the MD tasks was not significantly different between observation in time 1 and time 2 in all investigators. 95% agreement limits for the number of marked movement signs in the two repeated observations ranged from Mdiff ± 0.73 up to Mdiff ± 2.63 signs. A good construct validity of the qualitative assessment of movements in the MD tasks was indicated by significantly higher number of movement signs marked in the MD- children as compared to the MD+ children, with exception of the graphomotor task. Conclusions: The qualitative assessment within the MABC-2 test is a useful tool for the identification of manual dexterity impairment and weaker aspects of hand-eye coordination. However, the qualitative observational assessment of the MABC-2 tasks demands specific training of users.

Sensory and motor differences in Autism Spectrum Conditions and developmental coordination disorder in children: A cross-syndrome study

Recent research has shown that Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) can present with some similar symptomology as Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC). This paper therefore explored the similarities and differences in coordination and sensory responsivity between DCD and ASC. 77 children took part: 42 (35 male, 7 female) with ASC (ages 7–21: mean age 12.23 years), 26 (19 male, 7 female) with DCD (ages 7–21; mean age 11.07 years) and 9 (2 male, 7 female) with ASC and DCD (ages 8–15; mean age 12.27). All groups completed a battery of validated parent report measures online that included motor coordination (DCDQ), sensory responsivity (SPC-R) and social communication measures (AQ). Results showed no significant differences in coordination, and some significant differences in sensory responsivity between ASC and DCD (increased visual and auditory responsivity and decreased proprioception). Exploratory analysis showed that these differences showed good validity in identifying the diagnosis of ASC and DCD. These results elucidate the underlying causes of motor coordination difficulties in both conditions. Specifically, ASC coordination difficulties appear linked to visual processing impairments, whilst DCD coordination difficulties appear to be linked to spatial processing. This may aid better diagnosis and intervention for these conditions.

Developmental coordination disorder in children - experimental work and data annotation.

BackgroundDevelopmental coordination disorder (DCD) is described as a motor skill disorder characterized by a marked impairment in the development of motor coordination abilities that significantly interferes with performance of daily activities and/or academic achievement. Since some electrophysiological studies suggest differences between children with/without motor development problems, we prepared an experimental protocol and performed electrophysiological experiments with the aim of making a step toward a possible diagnosis of this disorder using the event-related potentials (ERP) technique. The second aim is to properly annotate the obtained raw data with relevant metadata and promote their long-term sustainability. Results The data from 32 school children (16 with possible DCD and 16 in the control group) were collected. Each dataset contains raw electroencephalography (EEG) data in the BrainVision format and provides sufficient metadata (such as age, gender, results of the motor test, and hearing thresholds) to allow other researchers to perform analysis. For each experiment, the percentage of ERP trials damaged by blinking artifacts was estimated. Furthermore, ERP trials were averaged across different participants and conditions, and the resulting plots are included in the manuscript. This should help researchers to estimate the usability of individual datasets for analysis. Conclusions The aim of the whole project is to find out if it is possible to make any conclusions about DCD from EEG data obtained. For the purpose of further analysis, the data were collected and annotated respecting the current outcomes of the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility Program on Standards for Data Sharing, the Task Force on Electrophysiology, and the group developing the Ontology for Experimental Neurophysiology. The data with metadata are stored in the EEG/ERP Portal.

Developmental Coordination Disorder in Children with a History of Infantile Colic

To investigate whether children with a history of infantile colic showed impaired motor development at age 7 years compared with unaffected peers. We studied 27,940 children from the Danish National Birth Cohort (1997-2002), including 1879 (6.8%) with a history of infantile colic. Infantile colic was defined according to the modified Wessel criteria as crying for more than 3 hours per day and more than 3 days per week. We compared the parental Developmental Coordination Disorder Questionnaire 2007 (DCDQ'07) scores in children with and without infantile colic after adjustment for intrauterine exposures, feeding type, parity, maternal age, socioeconomic status, Apgar score, gestational age, and birth weight. Children with a history of infantile colic had an elevated risk of scoring above the predefined cutoff limit of possible or suspected developmental coordination disorder (OR, 1.3; 95% CI, 1.0-1.7; P = .034). The mean total DCDQ'07 score was -0.4 point (95% CI, -0.8 to 0) lower in children with a history of infantile colic. Moreover, they were at higher risk for a low total score (OR for a 10-point decrease, 1.1; 95% CI, 1.0-1.1; P = .006) and a low general coordination score (OR, 1.3; 95% CI, 1.1-1.5, P = .000) in the DCDQ'07. All associations appeared to be stronger among boys, but no statistically significant effect measure modification between infantile colic and sex was found. We found no evidence of a strong association between infantile colic and developmental coordination disorder in this large Danish cohort.

Efficacy of Fluoxetine in Developmental Coordination Disorder in Children

Introduction DCD is a motor skill disorder thatinterferes with children's (majority boys) ability to perform day to day activities. In addition to theirmotor coordination problem it generally interferes with academic performance, socialintegration and self esteem. Methods 16healthy boys, age8-12 yrs with DCD. Inclusion Criteria: Diagnosis of DCD, basedon DSM IV criteria and a score below the suspected clinical cutoff on the Parent-reported Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Checklist for DCD ( Procedure Participantswere randomly divided into 2 groups. One who would receive (10mg/day) Fluoxetine(Experimental) and the other who would receive Placebo (Control). Assessment Participantswere assessed using CGAS at the beginningand end of the study period (3 months) and were statistically analyzed. Results There was no significantdifference between mean global score of the control group before and afterplacebo administration. When t score was computed in the experimentalgroup before and after administration of Fluoxetine, statistically significantdifference in the mean global score was noticed. Conclusion It is an established fact that DCD doesn't really improve on pharmacotherapy. Hence, Fluoxetine, an SSRI cannot beexpected to bring any change in the motor functionality of the childrensuffering from DCD, but, as the present study suggests, it may help the victimscope with the disorder better, probably by boosting self esteem.

Development Coordination Disorder in Children A Parent and Teacher Guide for Early Identification (Literature Review)

The most widely internationally term used to describe children with coordination difficulties is development coordination disorder (DCD). Developmental coordination disorder is usually first recognized when a child fails to reach such normal developmental milestones as walking or beginning to dress him- or herself and is diagnosed when children do not develop normal motor coordination (coordination of movements involving the voluntary muscles). The aim of this review is to find out; the impact of development coordination disorder in children, overleaping of DCD with other conditions and finally identification and classification of children with DCD. Children with DCD are a heterogeneous group. Any given child may present with a variety of different problems. Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is obvious when there is a marked impairment in the performance of motor skills in children. For a child with DCD, motor skills are very difficult and require more effort. The diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder is most commonly made when the child's parents or teachers notice that he or she is lagging behind peers in learning motor skills, or having learning problems in school. Identification of coordination motor difficulties (skills) is an important phase when observing children for possible development coordination disorder. These are: poor kinaesthetic acuity, poor visual perception, poor static balance and postural control, loss of information from visual-spatial short-term or working memory, poor attentional control, reduced strength and enhanced co-activation of muscles, slow movement preparation, enhanced spatial and temporal variability and, finally, slow feedback processing DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2014.v3n4p203

Prenatal and perinatal risk factors for developmental coordination disorder in children

To explore the prenatal and perinatal risk factors for developmental coordination disorder (DCD) in children so as to provide a basis for etiological studies and early diagnosis on DCD. Stratified clustered sampling was used to select 160 classes from randomly selected 15 public nursery schools which were distributed throughout the five main districts in Suzhou city. A total of 4 001 children were included in the study. Multilevel logistic regression and structural equation model (SEM) were used to analyze the risk factors of DCD. Results from the multilevel logistic regression model showed that when factors as:class internal clustering, children's gender, age and Kaup value etc., were under control, factors as acute fetal distress, premature and newborn pathological jaundice would be included in the model (OR values were 7.030, 3.374, 1.993, with all their Ps<0.001), and showing these variables were related to DCD. of SEM showed that the related coefficient between 'Minimal Brain Dysfunction' and 'Motor coordination skill' was -0.18 with statistical significance (P < 0.05). It also indicated that the minimal brain dysfunction would negatively impact on the children's motor skill. There were risk factors of DCD noticed during the prenatal and peri-natal periods. Practitioners working at the maternity and child health care areas should improve the skills in assessing and monitoring the prenatal and peri-natal risk factors related to DCD, and to better carry out early screening, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of DCD.

Developmental coordination disorder in children – experimental work and data annotation

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Effect of a strength training program in young children with developmental coordination disorder

Background and purpose A strength training program was associated with changes in muscle strength, motor function, and proprioceptive position sense in a young child with poor body awareness and a diagnosis of developmental coordination disorder. Patients and methods This study included 80 children diagnosed with developmental coordination disorder. Their age ranged from 8 and 13 years. The children were divided randomly into two equal groups. The exercise group received a 3-month strength program that included upper limb, lower limb, and trunk and neck exercises as well as running three sessions per week The patients were evaluated and scored functionally, using the Behavior Rating Scale, and objectively, using a Biodex dynamometer, at different time intervals pretreatment and 3 months after the treatment program. Results The results showed a statistically significant improvement in the measured variables of both groups when comparing their pre-treatment and post-treatment mean values. A significant difference was found in favor of the study group (B) in comparison with group (A). Conclusion It can be concluded that a regular program of physical activities has a positive effect in improving the symptoms of developmental coordination disorder in children.

Construction and Use of Semantic Repository for Electrophysiological Experiments

Event Abstract Back to Event Construction and Use of Semantic Repository for Electrophysiological Experiments Roman Mouček1*, Jan Smitka1, Petr Ježek1, Pavel Mautner1, Ladislav Čepička1 and Irena Holečková2 1 University of West Bohemia, Czechia 2 University Hospital, Czechia A need to store, organize, share and interpret data and metadata from electrophysiological experiments also emerged during our investigation of developmental coordination disorder in children. If classic data and metadata were successfully stored to the EEG/ERP portal [1], related studies, discussions, and partial interpretations remained unorganized and not searchable. Since the EEG/ERP portal (using a relational database a persistent layer) was not sufficiently prepared to store and process these unstructured texts, it was decided to find an appropriate solution to aggregate and store such data and facilitate subsequent search of relevant information. It was also necessary to use already existing description of data and domain knowledge in a form of semantic web structures. The OWLIM repository [2] and the KIM platform [3] were finally selected and used to store, annotate and search data. The KIM Platform supports semantic annotation of documents based on ontology, which is stored in the semantic repository. The annotated documents can be searched through; the use of ontological terms ensures more relevant results than a normal full-text search. To facilitate ontology development, a tool KIM-OWLImport was created. It is able to retrieve the selected ontology into the semantic repository in memory and modify it according to the rules defined by the KIM platform. The ontology then can be used for semantic annotation. To import documents into the KIM Platform a tool KIMBridge was developed. It runs as a service and periodically downloads new documents from selected data sources. Currently, KIMBridge supports downloading PDF documents from Google Drive and downloading discussions from the social network LinkedIn. Downloaded documents are annotated according to ontological prototype and indexed in the KIM Platform. Subsequent search is made through the web interface. This functionality was verified on a test set of domain documents. Acknowledgements This work was supported by the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic under the grant P407/12/1525.

Developmental Coordination Disorder in children with specific language impairment: Co-morbidity and impact on quality of life

Co-morbidity of Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) in children with specific language impairment (SLI) and the impact of DCD on quality-of-life (QOL) was investigated in 65 5-8 year old children with SLI (43 boys, age 6.8±0.8; 22 girls, age 6.6±0.8). The prevalence of DCD was assessed using DSM-IV-TR criteria (American Psychiatric Association (APA), 2000) operationally defined in the clinical practice guideline (CPG): movement ABC scores below 15th percentile, scores on DCDQ and/or MOQ-T below 15th percentile, absence of medical condition according to paediatric-neurological exam. Quality of life (QOL) was measured with the TNO-AZL-Child-Quality-Of-Life (TACQOL) Questionnaire filled out by parents for the SLI group with and without DCD, and compared to a reference group (N=572; age 6.9±0.9). The TACQOL covers 7 QOL domains: physical, motor, cognitive and social functioning, autonomy, positive and negative moods. Prevalence of DCD in children with SLI was 32.3%. In children with SLI, mean QOL scores were significantly lower in the autonomy, cognitive, social and positive moods domains compared to the reference group. Children with SLI and DCD differed from children with SLI without DCD by significantly lower mean overall-, motor-, autonomy-, and cognitive domain-QOL scores. Clinicians should be aware that about one third of children with SLI can also be diagnosed with DCD. Assessment of QOL is warranted in order to assess which domains are affected in children with SLI with or without DCD.