To date, it is unknown whether waist circumference can be measured validly and reliably when a subject is in a supine position. This issue is relevant when international standards for healthy participants are applied to persons with severe intellectual, sensory, and motor disabilities. Thus, the aims of our study were (1) to determine the validity of waist circumference measurements obtained in...

Huntington's disease (HD) is one of the most disabling degenerative movement disorders, as it not only affects the motor system but also leads to cognitive disabilities and psychiatric symptoms. Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the pallidum is a promising symptomatic treatment targeting the core motor symptom: chorea. This article gives an overview of preliminary evidence on pathophysiology, saf...

We conducted an analogue functional analysis contrasting motor tasks with varying types of social consequences for movements associated with tardive dyskinesia (TD) in 2 men who had been diagnosed with developmental disabilities and TD. Our findings suggest that TD-related movements were not a function of social reinforcement contingencies. However, motor-activation tasks decreased TD-related m...

It is generally agreed that cognitive and language development are dependent on the emergence of motor skills. As the literature on this issue concerning children with developmental disabilities is scarce, we examined the interrelationships between motor, cognitive, and language development in children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and compared them to those in children...

Cerebral palsy (CP) is one of the major forms of developmental disorders. There are different approaches and controversies in rehabilitation treatment. The Neuronal Group Selection theory could provide theoretical explanation for Stojcević Polovina rehabilitation method. The aim of the study was to evaluate long-term impact of intensive and continuously performed rehabilitation on the motor aut...

An important area in the learning and development of individuals with disabilities is the acquisition of independent, age-appropriate leisure skills. Three adults with autism and mental retardation were taught to access specific Internet sites using backward chaining and most-to-least intrusive prompting. The number of independent steps completed in the task analysis increased following training.

This article presents a model to guide activity-focused motor interventions as a component of early intervention services for physical and occupational therapists working with infants and young children with neurological conditions and other developmental disabilities. Activity-focused interventions involve structured practice and repetition of functional actions, and are directed toward the le...

Previous research has shown an association between children's development of psychosocial and motor skills. This study evaluated the development of these skills in 301 three-year-old deaf and hard of hearing children (M: 37.8 months) and considered a range of possible predictors including gender, birth weight, age at first fitting with hearing devices, hearing device used, presence of additiona...

The relative difficulty of motor performance tasks for school-aged children and adults with physical disabilities within a standardized motor performance test was examined. The Tufts Assessment of Motor Performance (TAMP) was administered to 69 children (ages 6-18 years, X = 12.1, SD = 3.9) and 137 adults (ages 19-83 years, X = 46.7, SD = 20.0) with neurological and musculoskeletal impairments....