Article

AIM: To investigate the development of handwriting, fine motor skills and school
marks in children with unilateral cerebral palsy (CP) and relate the performance
in handwriting skill to age and IQ at a 16-month follow-up. METHOD: Data from 16
children (5 females, 11 males; mean age 11 years 4 months, SD 1 year 6 months,
range 8-13 years) with left-sided hemiplegia were collected. The Minnesota
Handwriting Assessment (MHA) for handwriting skill, the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test
of Motor Proficiency (BOTMP) for fine motor skills, the Wechsler Intelligence
Scale for Children Revised (WISC-R) for IQ, the Manual Ability Classification
System (MACS) and school marks of children were used. RESULTS: Handwriting
quality, handwriting speed and fine motor skills improved over 16 months but the
children with unilateral CP still performed below their peers. School marks did
not change. The regression model (Adj. R(2) = 0.76) revealed that age and IQ were
negatively correlated and good predictors for the improvement in handwriting
quality. No relationship was found between handwriting speed and age or IQ.
CONCLUSION: Children with unilateral CP continued to develop handwriting skill
over a longer time period than expected. Age and IQ predicted the rate of
development in handwriting quality. Children kept up school marks despite the
increasing demands of the succeeding grade.

Langue : ANGLAIS