The upscale of surlife on preterm neonates (PTN) is due to the advances in antenatal care, those individuals must have higher chances of showing delays on the psychomotor development. Prematurity may be associated with antenatal external factors, such as socioeconomic conditions and low education level and the postnatal variables, such as the birth weight and growth percentile. The Test of Infant Motor Performance (TIMP), it is a clinical tool highly sensitive to small changes in motor performance. As much sooner as changes are detected on motor milestones, sooner the intervention will occur.

Analysis on the motor development profile in PTNs.

Cross-sectional study. performed in a joint accommodation (JA) in a public hospital in Brazil. It included the neonates (NT) with gestational age (GA) higher than 34 and stable, excluding NTs with genetic syndromes, congenital malformations, osteomyo-articular disorders, sensory impairments, and neurological disorders. The tool used was the TIMP scale, the childs were filmed and evaluated by a blind researcher who has scored and categorized the groups with or without changes in the motor performance. In the data analysis we wore the Minitab® 14 statistical package, the statistical significance was considered as p<0.05. For the comparison between the groups, we used the unpaired t test or the Mann Whitney depending on the data distribution.

The sample of the study was composed of 8 neonates’ terms and 6 preterm neonates. Regarding the characterization of the sample, the maternal age of the group of PTN was 26.4 ± 6 and the group of NNT 25.1 ± 6.7, the inferior social class was 100% and 75%, appointment number of antenatal 6.2 ± 1.3 e 7.2 ± 3.2. Considering the head circumference the PTNs presented 28.7 ± 2.6 and the NNTs 39.2 ± 2.1, chest circumference 27.5 ± 1.2 and 33.8 ± 1.9, the GA 33.2 ± 2.2 and 39.7 ± 1.3, birth weight 1707 ± 258 and 3275 ± 388, and height 37 ± 7.7 e 49.2 ± 2.6 respectively. The data related to the brute score from TIMP have shown that the PTNs had the score lower (42.1 ± 2.4) to the NNT (48.5 ± 5.7), p = 0.01.

This current research shows that there is a statistically significant difference in the motor performance on pre preterm neonates in the hospital environment. Thus, showing that the early detection enables the implementation of sensorimotor intervention programs performed by a child physiotherapist.

Premature infants presenting motor decline in the first months of life, presents commitment to learning and social interaction, pointing to the relevance of having a professional physiotherapist on JA and the role of early intervention guiding the parents and reducing the consequences of prematurity.