Developmental Coordination Disorder and Daily Performance in School-aged Childrenan Interrelation of Individual, Environmental and Activity Factors

Abstract

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is one of the most frequent neurodevelopmental disorders in school-aged children worldwide, but it is a highly under-diagnosed condition in Spain. Moreover, little is known about the interrelation of sociodemographic factors, sensory processing and daily activities in DCD and functional performance in school-aged children with and without DCD. Thus, the aims of this thesis were: (1) to examine the prevalence and associated sociodemographic factors of DCD in Spanish school-aged children; (2) to identify how sensory processing patterns present in children with DCD in comparison to typically developing children and children with ADHD; and (3) to explore the role of individual, environmental and activity factors on performance and participation in motor-based daily activities in children with and without motor coordination difficulties. Two samples including more than 800 Spanish school-aged children were analyzed. Findings show that prevalence of p-DCD in this population ranges from 8% to 13%. In addition, we found a complex influence between individual (i.e., age, sex, sensory processing), environmental (i.e., family-related factors [educational background, area of residence and siblings] and country) and activity-related factors over daily functioning, where motor performance mediates the relationship between individual and environmental constraints, learning of activities and daily participation.