The effects of psychomotor therapy in DCD children with or without comorbidities

International audience; Aim: Smits-Engelsman et al.1 meta-analysis of therapies for patients with DCD revealed that traditional therapy, including psychomotor training,have beneficial effects on patients. Their study however did not take into consideration the case of comorbidity. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of comorbidity (SLI, Developmental Dyslexia, ADHD) on the efficiency and choice of techniques within psychomotor training for children with DCD. Method: We compared the effects of psychomotor training, carried out between 2009 and 2015, in 2 groups of children from the Midi Pyrenees region: DCD children and children at risk of DCD, with (n=21) and without comorbidities (n=9). All children were assessed with the M-ABC (manual dexterity, ball skills, balance and total impairment score) and the BHK writing test (handwriting quality, handwriting speed) before and after psychomotor therapy. The different scores were submitted to ANOVAs (2[Group] x 2[Pre-Post therapy]. Qualitative (parts of different therapeutic methods) aspects of the training were also studied. Full Scale Intelligence Quotient (FSIQ) of the Wechsler scales were also examined.Results: The average duration of psychomotor therapy was the same for both groups (20 months). Significant differences between pre and post therapy were revealed for the M-ABC: Manual dexterity (p