Performance of retarded children, with and without Down syndrome, on the Bruininks Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency.

The purpose of this study was to examine the gross motor and fine motor abilities of children with mental retardation using the Bruininks Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency. We compared the motor skills of 24 mentally retarded children, 12 with Down syndrome and 12 without Down syndrome. The children ranged in chronological age from 7.6 years to 11 years and were of comparable mental age. Within each group, there were no significant sex differences nor were there differences between the two groups in motor performance for the male subjects. The female subjects with Down syndrome, however, scored significantly lower than female subjects without Down syndrome on running speed, strength, visual motor ability, speed, and dexterity and fine motor composite scores. As a group, the children with Down syndrome scored significantly lower than the children without Down syndrome in the areas of running speed, balance, strength, and visual motor control. The gross motor and fine motor skill composite scores were also significantly lower for the children with Down syndrome than for the children without Down syndrome.