Diminished Performance and Learning of a Novel Visuomotor Skill in Children Born Preterm

Premature birth has long-term effects on sensory, motor, and cognitive development. Despite evidence of impaired motor function in young children born preterm, there is less known about motor learning and the characterization of the acquisition and retention of motor skills in this population. Furthermore, bimanual movements, important for performing everyday activities, may be preferentially affected in preterm children. In this study, we compared unimanual and bimanual motor skill learning in young children born preterm compared to children born at term age. Unimanual and bimanual de novo visuomotor learning tasks were implemented on a computerized tablet (Apple iPad). Fifty-five participants (N = 14 preterm), corrected age 5-8 years, completed three testing sessions: initial practice (72 practice attempts), 24-h retention (24 practice attempts), and 7-day retention (24 practice attempts). Speed (completion time) and accuracy (movement path length) characterized motor performance. Learning was determined by comparing performance at the end of initial practice to each retention test. Overall, preterm children exhibited reduced speed and accuracy on both tasks compared to term-born children. All children performed better on the unimanual version of the task. Retention was similar between groups and tasks. Biological age had a small, nonlinear relationship with performance. These results confirm that preterm children have impaired unimanual and bimanual skills but are capable of learning new visuomotor patterns, with potential differences in skill retention. This evidence provides insight into the varied trajectories of motor development of preterm children.