Do visual impairments affect risk of motor problems in preterm and term low birth weight adolescents?
GROUND: Increased prevalence of motor and visual problems has been reported in low birth weight populations, but the association between them is less studied. AIM: To examine how visual impairments may be associated with the increased risk of motor problems in low birth weight adolescents. METHODS: Fifty-one very low birth weight adolescents (VLBW), 56 term small for gestational age (SGA) and 75 term control adolescents, without cerebral palsy, were examined at the age of 14. Motor skills were examined by the Movement Assessment Battery for Children. Visual functions included visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, nystagmus, strabismus, stereoacuity, accommodation, convergence and visual perception (Visual-Motor Integration test). An abnormality score was calculated as the sum of visual impairments. We used odds ratio as an estimate of the relative risk of having motor problems. RESULTS: The odds of having motor problems were 10.4 (95% CI: 2.2-49.4) in the VLBW group and 5.1 (95% CI: 1.0
