General Movement Assessment in infancy and later cognitive outcomes: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

Abstract

The General Movements Assessment (GMA) is a brief assessment of how babies move in the first months of life. It is commonly used to help identify infants at risk of neurodevelopmental conditions such as cerebral palsy. Researchers and clinicians have increasingly wondered whether these early movement patterns might also provide clues about later learning and thinking abilities. We reviewed 47 studies that used the GMA and followed infants into childhood or adulthood, measuring cognitive outcomes including intelligence and other specific thinking skills. Most studies involved high-risk infants, including those born preterm or with early medical complications. Overall, we found that early infant movement patterns are probably associated with some aspects of later cognitive development, although confidence in the evidence varied. The findings highlighted here are those supported by moderate-certainty evidence. Infants with atypical movements in the first 8 weeks were more likely to have lower cognitive abilities in early childhood. Infants with atypical movements at around 3 to 5 months were more likely to have lower IQ and reduced verbal and visual cognitive abilities in later childhood. Lower motor optimality scores at 3 to 5 months were also associated with reduced verbal and visual cognitive abilities. For all other specific cognitive outcomes and outcomes in adulthood, confidence in the evidence was low or very low.