Physical, Perceptual, Socio-Relational and Affective Limitation of Five-Years-Old Children Born Preterm and Full-Term.
Abstract Purpose: To compare the development of physical-motor, perceptual-motor and socio-relational and affective skills of five-years-old children born preterm and full term, completing the Checklist of Psychomotor Activities.Methods: A prospective simple ex-post facto study was conducted. The sample consisted of six hundred ninety-four (694) five-year-old children enrolled in the third year of early childhood education in the Province of Albacete-Spain. This study is based on medical histories - prior parental written consents - and the results of evaluating the motor skills completing the Checklist of Psychomotor Activities (CPA).Results: The study determined that children born preterm have a lower development of their physical-motor skills. In the perceptual-motor field, premature children show lower scores in the variables related to their body image and body schema, motor dissociation and visual-motor coordination, as well as in socio-relational and affective aspects. However, regarding laterality, dynamic coordination, motor execution, tonic-postural control and balance, the development of these skills is not affected.Conclusions: The study demonstrates the needs to establish protocols oriented to the prevention of the difficulties detected in children with psychomotor high-risk and also the needs to reinforce the educational programs in this particular area to improve the integral development of children born preterm since they show less development of physical-motor perceptual-motor, socio-relational and affective skills.