Fine motor ability and psychiatric disorders in youth

Author(s)

Teixeira Mendes, Lorenna Sena ^{[1, 2]} ; Manfro, Gisele Gus ^{[1, 3]} ; Gadelha, Ary ^{[4, 3, 5]} ; Pan, Pedro Mario ^{[4, 3, 5]} ; Bressan, Rodrigo Affonseca ^{[4, 3, 5]} ; Rohde, Luis Augusto ^{[1, 3]} ; Salum, Giovanni Abrahao ^{[1, 3]}

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Rio Grande do Sul, Dept Psychiat, Porto Alegre, RS - Brazil

^[2] Hosp Clin Porto Alegre, Ramiro Barcelos 2350, Room 2202, BR-90035003 Porto Alegre, RS - Brazil

^[3] Natl Inst Dev Psychiat Children & Adolescents, Porto Alegre, RS - Brazil

^[4] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Dept Psychiat, Sao Paulo - Brazil

^[5] Univ Fed Sao Paulo, Lab Neurociencias Clin, Sao Paulo - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: EUROPEAN CHILD & ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRY; v. 27, n. 5, p. 605-613, MAY 2018.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Impaired fine motor ability has been linked to several domains of psychopathology. However, studies validating the specificity of this association among several categorical psychiatric disorders are still needed. The aim of this study was to assess differences in fine motor ability performance among four non-overlapping groups of psychiatric disorders and a group of typical developing comparisons (TDC). Our sample consisted of 2035 subjects aged 6-14-year-old. Diagnoses of psychiatric disorders were performed with the Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA). Five non-overlapping groups without comorbidity were formed: phobic disorders (n = 101), distress disorders (n = 82), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (n = 133), oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder (ODD/CD) (n = 52) and one group of typical developing comparisons (TDC) (n = 1667). Fine motor ability was evaluated by three tasks: sequential finger-thumb opposition, Oseretsky, and pronation/supination tests. Each task was assessed by total time to perform the movement and levels of accuracy, fluency, symmetry, precision, and coordination. We found that, when compared to TDC, the ADHD group performed more poorly in total fine motor ability (mean difference = - 0.28; p = 0.014), time to complete the task (mean difference = 0.36; p < 0.001), accuracy (mean difference = - 0.30; p = 0.005), fluency (mean difference = - 0.26; p = 0.03), symmetry (mean difference - 0.25; p = 0.04), precision (mean difference = - 0.26; p = 0.026), and coordination (mean difference = - 0.25; p = 0.042). The ADHD group also took more time to complete the task than the ODD/CD group (mean difference = 0.45; p = 0.037). No other significant between-group differences were found. Additional analyses showed those differences were statistically significant for all ADHD dimensions. Our results suggest that children with ADHD present impairments in all aspects of fine motor abilities compared to TDC, a difference not found in other psychiatric disorders. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/50917-0 - INCT 2014: developmental psychiatry for children and adolescents
• Grantee: Eurípedes Constantino Miguel Filho
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants