Middle Childhood Adverse Psychomotor Outcomes from Malaria in Pregnancy: A Study using the Denver Developmental Screening Test-II

• Carlos Alberto Paraguassu-Chaves

  Federal University of Maranhão

  Author

• Allan Kardec Duailibe Barros Filho

  Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

  Author

• Carlos Tomaz

  Universidade CEUMA, Maranhão, Brazil

  Author

• Maria Clotilde H Tavares

  University of Brasília, DF, Brazil

  Author

• Lenita Rodrigues Moreira Dantas

  Higher Institute of Health Sciences and Environment of the Amazon – AICSA

  Author

• Carla Dolezel Trindade

  Instituto Universitário Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

  Author

• Simão Aznar Filho

  Instituto Universitário Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

  Author

• Christian Diniz Carvalho

  Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

  Author

• Fabrício Moraes de Almeida

  Federal University of Rondônia, Brazil

  Author

• João Viana Fonseca Neto

  Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

  Author

Objective: to evaluate changes in the development of premature children aged 5 to 6 years, born to mothers with malaria during pregnancy and to compare them to a control group of premature children born to mothers who did not have malaria during pregnancy. Methods: cross-sectional and analytical study. The Denver test-II was applied to 20 children in the study group and 20 children in the control group. Results: in the group of premature children of mothers with malaria during pregnancy, the vast majority showed abnormal performance with more significant changes in the activities of the language sector "define seven words", "say two compound words", "understand four prepositions" and "account five blocks”, “knows three adjectives”. In the fine-adaptive motor sector, the activities "draw people with six parts", "copy disassembled square", "copy +" and in the gross motor sector "swing your foot for six seconds", "swing your foot for five seconds", "swing the foot for four seconds", "rocks the foot for three seconds", were the most important developmental changes. In the control group, the performance of suspected delay or possible abnormality was more concentrated in the gross motor sector. Conclusions: children from 5 to 6 years of age, born prematurely to mothers with malaria during pregnancy, 80% had suspected abnormal performance, a result much higher than the group of children born prematurely to mothers without malaria. These results strongly suggest that malaria disease during pregnancy alters fetal development, producing developmental sequelae that can be detected even at 5 to 6 years of age. In addition, the results support the use of the Denver test-II as a simple screening method for the assessment of delays in child development, covering broad motor coordination (coarse), fine motor coordination (adaptive), language and personal-social adaptation. This test has been used to identify children who are at risk of developing problems and to monitor the child longitudinally.

1. Carlos Alberto Paraguassu-Chaves, Federal University of Maranhão

   Professor

2. Allan Kardec Duailibe Barros Filho, Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

   Professor

3. Carlos Tomaz, Universidade CEUMA, Maranhão, Brazil

   Full Professor

4. Maria Clotilde H Tavares, University of Brasília, DF, Brazil

   Professor

5. Lenita Rodrigues Moreira Dantas, Higher Institute of Health Sciences and Environment of the Amazon – AICSA

   Researcher

6. Carla Dolezel Trindade, Instituto Universitário Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

   Professor

7. Simão Aznar Filho, Instituto Universitário Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

   Professor

8. Christian Diniz Carvalho, Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

   Researcher

9. Fabrício Moraes de Almeida, Federal University of Rondônia, Brazil

   Researcher of the Doctoral and Master Program in Regional Development and Environment (PGDRA/UFRO). Leader of line 2 ― Technological and Systemic Development, and Researcher of GEITEC

10. João Viana Fonseca Neto, Federal University of Maranhão, Brazil

    Professor

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Copyright (c) 2020 Fabrício Moraes de Almeida, Carlos Alberto Paraguassu-Chaves, Allan Kardec Duailibe Barros Filho, Carlos Tomaz, Maria Clotilde H Tavares, Lenita Rodrigues Moreira Dantas, Carla Dolezel Trindade, Simão Aznar Filho, Christian Diniz Carvalho, João Viana Fonseca Neto

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