M. Mcphillips et al., Effects of replicating primary-reflex movements on specific reading difficulties in children: a randomised, double-blind, controlled trial, LANCET, 355(9203), 2000, pp. 537-541
Citations number
36
Categorie Soggetti
General & Internal Medicine","Medical Research General Topics
Background Children with specific reading difficulties have problems that e
xtend beyond the range of underlying language-related deficits leg, they ha
ve difficulties with balance and mote, control). We investigated the role o
f persistent primary reflexes (Which are closely linked in the earliest mon
ths of life to the balance system) in disrupting the development of reading
skills.
Methods We assessed the efficacy of an intervention programme based on repl
icating the movements generated by the primary-reflex system during fetal a
nd neonatal life. A randomised, individually matched, double-blind, placebo
-controlled design was used and children (aged 8-11 years) with persistent
primary reflexes and a poor standard of reading were enrolled into one of t
hree treatment groups: experimental (children were given a specific movemen
t sequence); placebo control (children were given non-specific movements);
and control (no movements).
Findings From an initial sample of 98 children, 60 children, 20 in each gro
up were matched on age, sex, verbal intelligence quotient (IQ), reading abi
lity, and persistent asymmetrical tonic neck reflex. For asymmetrical tonic
neck-reflex levels there was a significant (group by time) interaction (p<
0.001). The experimental group showed a significant decrease in the level o
f persistent reflex over the course of the study (mean change -1.8 [95% CI
-2.4 to -1.2], p<0.001), whereas the changes in the placebo-control and con
trol groups were not significant (-0.2 [-0.9 to 0.6] and -0.4 [-0.9 to 0.2]
).
Interpretation This study provides further evidence of a link between: read
ing difficulties and control of movement in children. In particular, our st
udy highlights how the educational functioning of children may be linked to
interference from an early neurodevelopmental system (the primary-reflex s
ystem). A new approach to the treatment of children with reading difficulti
es is proposed involving assessment of underlying neurological functioning,
and appropriate remediation.