Motor performance of HIV-positive children

Abstract

Introduction: Evidence indicates that HIV-positive children have a lower motor performance compared to uninfected children. The analysis of the factors that determine these changes is very important for the implementation of rehabilitation strategies. Objective: To analyze the motor development of seropositive children and compare it to the performance of healthy children with normal neuropsycomotor development. Materials and Methods: Eight children were evaluated, aged between four and six years, divided into two groups: Group I (n = 4) composed of HIV-positive children without any secondary disease and Group II (n = 4) composed of healthy children, matched to Group I by sex and age. The Peabody Developmental Motor Scales (PDMS-2) for gross motor function and fine motor function were used to evaluate motor performance. Results: In both groups, most of the children presented an average or above average motor performance, according to normal data of PDMS-2. The analysis indicated no inter-group differences in the gross scores (p > 0,05, Mann-Whitney test) or motor quotients (p> 0.05, Mann-Whitney test). However, intra-group analysis indicated a marginally significant difference between motor quotients (p = 0,07, Wilcoxon test), with higher fine motor quotient in both groups. Conclusion: The data suggest no significant difference between the motor performance of HIV-positive children and healthy children. These results contribute to the analysis of motor development of HIV-positive children, raising questions about factors that may influence the motor development of these children.