Reaching and grasping a moving target is impaired in children with developmental coordination disorder.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the performance of reaching and grasping a moving target in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD).


METHODS
Sixteen children with DCD and 11 age-matched controls were instructed to reach and grasp a toy car that was sliding down an 8° or 15° slope. Reaction time (RT), movement time (MT), and peak force (PF) were recorded.


RESULTS
Children with DCD failed 35% of total test trials. Within the successful trials, children with DCD had significantly longer RTs and MTs and generated larger PF than control children (P < .05). When the slope increased from 8° to 15°, both groups of children could adjust MT and PF (P < .01).


CONCLUSIONS
Children with DCD were slower and generated larger force to reach and grasp a moving target than their age-matched peers. However, the ability to modify the MT and grip force appeared to be preserved in children with DCD.
Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. rsmmak@inet.polyu.edu.hk
Margaret K Y
MK
Mak
D000054:Acceleration; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001132:Arm / Q000473:pathology*; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D018737:Hand Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019957:Motor Skills Disorders / Q000473:pathology*; D009069:Movement Disorders / Q000473:pathology*; D011930:Reaction Time; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric