Are infants with torticollis at risk of a delay in early motor milestones compared with a control group of healthy infants?

Journal article, 2009

Recently it is claimed that infants with congenital muscular torticollis (CMT) are at risk of having a delay in achieving early motor milestones. The aim of this study was to investigate if infants with CMT are at risk of at risk of having a delay in achieving early motor milestones and to compare them with a control group of healthy infants. A second aim was to investigate if the time spent in a prone position and plagiocephaly, had any influence on the motor development. Eighty-two infants with CMT (35 female and 47 male) were compared with 40 healthy infants (18 female and 22 male). Motor development was assessed with the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS). Multiple regression showed that infants in the CMT group had a significantly lower score at AIMS compared with the control group at two (P=0.03) and six months of age (P=0.05). Infants who spent ≥ three times daily in a prone position when awake, had significantly higher scores at AIMS than infants who spent less time in prone at two (P=0.001), six (P <0.001) and ten months of age (P <0.001). Conclusion: The CMT group significantly achieved early motor milestones later compared with the control group until the age of ten months, but time spent in a prone position when awake seems to be of greater magnitude.