Segmental trunk control acquisition and reaching in typically developing infants

Abstract

This study explored the influence of an external support at the thoracic and pelvic level of the trunk on the success of reaching, postural stability and reaching kinematics while infants reached for a toy. Seventeen infants (4-6 months) were clustered into two groups according to their trunk control assessed with the Segmental Assessment of Trunk Control. Major differences were seen between groups with pelvic support, whereas with thoracic support, all infants showed similar quality reaching behaviors. With the external pelvic support, infants who had acquired trunk control in the lumbar region were more accurate in their reaching movements (less movement time, improved straightness of reach, less movement units and increased path length per movement unit) and were more stable (decreased trunk and head displacement) during a reach than infants who had only acquired trunk control in the thoracic region. These results support the hypothesis that trunk control influences the quality of reaching behavior.

Figure 1

Figure 1

Figure 2

Estimated group means for: movement time (MT), straightness score (St.Sc.), movement units (MU), path divided by number of MUs (PL/MU), angular head displacement (Hd.Disp.), angular trunk displacement (Trk.Displ.), and percentage of successful grasps (%SG); at both levels of support, Group 1 (dark gray bars) and Group 2 (light gray bars). Error bars, +/− 2 SE. * = p < .05, ** = p < .01.