Relationships among integration of Primitive reflexes, Motor competence and Crawling in children

The inhibition or integration of primary reflexes is fundamental in the child’s development. If this does not occur in an adequate manner, reflexes may remain active and children may develop poor motor competence. Therefore, the aims of the study were to analyze the relationships among the persistence of reflexes, motor competence and crawling pattern in children and to assess gender differences. The Primitive Reflex Assessment protocol, the Movement Assessment Battery for Children and an ad-hoc questionnaire for parents were used. The sample consisted of 233 children from childhood education, and two extreme groups were made (low motor competence and typical development or high motor competence). The results indicated that participants with lower reflex inhibition showed lower motor competence, most of them had not crawled, and boys showed a higher presence of non-inhibited reflexes. It can be concluded that both early detection and motor interventions that favour reflex inhibition are necessary.