Sensorimotor development in cerebral-palsied infants assessed with the Uzgiris-Hunt scales.

The cognitive development of a group of 89 cerebral-palsied infants, aged six to 24 months, was investigated using the Uzgiris-Hunt scales. The results were compared with normative data for the Italian population and with data obtained in a group of low-risk term and preterm infants, 11 to 13 months old. The test was easy to carry out, even on infants with a severe motor impairment. The majority of the infants showed cognitive delay on most of the scales. Tetraplegic patients performed significantly worse than those with diplegia or hemiplegia. There were no differences between preterm and term infants, for either normal or cerebral palsy groups, if age was corrected for preterm birth. Sensorimotor development appeared to be organized similarly for cerebral-palsied infants and normal controls; however, these data raise the question of the role of action in early cognitive development.