de Sousa Wendy Gabrielle Franca, Greco Ana Luiza Righetto, de Medeiros Maja, Spittle Alicia Jane, Formiga Cibelle Kayenne Roberto
Department of Physical Therapy, Universidade Estadual de Goiás, Oeste Avenue, Aeroporto Sector, Goiânia, GO, 74075-110, Brazil.
Clinics Hospital, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO, Brazil.
BMC Pediatr. 2025 Aug 16;25(1):626. doi: 10.1186/s12887-025-05942-9.
Preterm infants have an increased risk of neurodevelopmental delays, with consequences that may persist in later life. Thus, monitoring their development is needed for early detection and targeted intervention. This study aimed to assess the correlation between neurological function and motor skills in preterm infants from 2 to 6 months of corrected age after hospital discharge in an outpatient follow-up program.
This cross-sectional study involved 50 preterm infants with a mean gestational age of 32.0 (± 2.8) weeks and a mean birth weight of 1645.2 (± 576.5) grams. Neurological function and motor development were assessed once between two to six months of corrected age by using the Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination (HINE) and Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS), respectively. Data on pregnancy, type of delivery, and birth were obtained using interviews with family and medical records. The Spearman correlation coefficient assessed the association between HINE and AIMS scores.
A significant correlation was found between HINE categories and AIMS subscales: cranial nerve function versus prone (r = 0.55; p < 0.001); posture versus prone (r = 0.69; p < 0.001); posture versus sitting (r = 0.67; p < 0.001); posture versus standing (r = 0.63; p < 0.001); tone versus sitting (r = 0.51; p < 0.001); tone versus standing (r = 0.49; p < 0.001); and total HINE versus total AIMS (r = 0.77; p < 0.001).
The present study found strong correlation between neurological function and motor skills in preterm infants during the first months of life. Whilst the HINE and AIMS can complete each other, where there are limited resources the HINE may be appropriate to administer as a single assessment.
早产儿神经发育延迟风险增加，其后果可能持续至成年期。因此，需要监测其发育情况以便早期发现并进行针对性干预。本研究旨在评估门诊随访项目中出院后2至6个月校正年龄的早产儿神经功能与运动技能之间的相关性。
本横断面研究纳入了50例早产儿，其平均胎龄为32.0（±2.8）周，平均出生体重为1645.2（±576.5）克。分别在校正年龄2至6个月之间使用哈默史密斯婴儿神经检查（HINE）和艾伯塔婴儿运动量表（AIMS）对神经功能和运动发育进行一次评估。通过与家属访谈和查阅病历获取妊娠、分娩类型和出生情况的数据。采用Spearman相关系数评估HINE和AIMS评分之间的关联。
发现HINE类别与AIMS分量表之间存在显著相关性：脑神经功能与俯卧位（r = 0.55；p < 0.001）；姿势与俯卧位（r = 0.69；p < 0.001）；姿势与坐位（r = 0.67；p < 0.001）；姿势与站立位（r = 0.63；p < 0.001）；肌张力与坐位（r = 0.51；p < 0.001）；肌张力与站立位（r = 0.49；p < 0.001）；以及HINE总分与AIMS总分（r = 0.77；p < 0.001）。
本研究发现早产儿出生后头几个月神经功能与运动技能之间存在强相关性。虽然HINE和AIMS可以相互补充，但在资源有限的情况下，HINE可能适合作为单一评估工具使用。
