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Purpose: This retrospective study aims to describe the gross motor development of children aged 4 to 24 months with congenital heart disease (CHD) enrolled in a systematic developmental follow-up program and to describe the frequency of physical therapy sessions they received between 4 and 8 months of age. Methods: Twenty-nine infants with CHD underwent motor evaluations using the AIMS at 4 months, and the Bayley-III at 12 and 24 months. Results: Based on AIMS, 79% of 4-month-old infants had a gross motor delay and required physical therapy. Among these, 56.5% received one to two physical therapy sessions, and 43.5% received three to six sessions. Infants who benefited from regular interventions tended to show a better improvement in motor scores from 12 to 24 months. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of early motor screening in infants with CHD and suggests a potential benefit of early physical therapy in at-risk children. Abbreviations: CHD: Congenital heart disease; AIMS: Alberta Infant Motor Scales; Bayley-III: Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third edition; Bayley-III/GM: Gross Motor section of the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third edition [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To report the impact of early motor intervention in an infant with congenital heart disease (CHD) and a stroke.Methods and Results: A 35-week newborn with a complex CHD and a normal MRI presented with early motor developmental delay at 2 months. She began an intervention program, which included biweekly motor developmental therapy with a physiotherapist, parental education, and daily home exercises. At 4 months, she underwent cardiac surgery. Following surgery, she was diagnosed with a stroke involving the right sylvian artery territory. She continued her intensive intervention program. The 12-month assessment revealed an evident gain of motor function. Despite MRI evidence of a chronic infarct involving the primary motor cortex, the child had normal motor functions.Conclusion: This case report supports the positive impact of early intervention in infants with CHD and its potential effect on enhancing neuroplasticity, even in children with cerebro-vascular accidents involving areas of motor function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A retrospective cohort study was conducted to describe the relationship between gross motor function and manual ability in children with cerebral palsy and explore differences between cerebral palsy subtypes and associated comorbidities. Children with cerebral palsy born between 1999 and 2008 were included from the Registre de la Paralyse Cérébrale de Québec identifying 332 children. The overall agreement between Gross Motor Function Classification System and Manual Ability Classification Scale Levels was moderate (kappa 0.457, standard error 0.034) with a strong positive correlation (Spearman rho of 0.820, standard error 0.023). This agreement was moderate among children with spastic quadriparesis and dysketic cerebral palsy, fair in children with spastic diplegia, and poor in children with spastic hemiplegia. Children with cognitive impairment showed a higher correlation than those without cognitive impairment. The correlation between gross motor function and manual ability in children with CP varies based on neurologic subtype and cognitive level. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The objective of this study was to identify factors that predict ambulation in spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. A 4-year registrybased birth cohort was searched for patients with a diagnosis of spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy. All patients were then divided in 2 groups: (a) Gross Motor Function Classification System level ≤III (ambulant group) and (b) Gross Motor Function Classification System level ≥IV (nonambulant group). Clinical features were then compared between the 2 groups. A total of 85 children with a diagnosis of spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy were identified. Of these, 65 and 20 were classified in the ''nonambulant'' and ''ambulant'' groups, respectively. The presence of seizures in the first 24 or 72 hours of life and the administration of antibiotics during pregnancy/delivery were all associated with an eventual inability to achieve ambulation. A gestational age ≤27 weeks, birth weight <1000 g, Caucasian mother, and the presence of hyperbilirubinemia were significantly linked with independent ambulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]