Early identification of motor delay: Family-centred screening tool.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the Harris Infant Neuromotor Test (HINT), an infant neuromotor test using Canadian norms published in 2010 that could be used to screen for motor delay during the first year of life. QUALITY OF EVIDENCE: Extensive research has been published on the intrarater, interrater, and test-retest reliability and the content, concurrent, predictive, and known-groups validity of the HINT, as well as on the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of parental concerns, as assessed by the HINT. Most evidence is level II. MAIN MESSAGE: Diagnosing motor delays during the first year of life is important because these often indicate more generalized developmental delays or specific disabilities, such as cerebral palsy. Parental concerns about their children's motor development are strongly predictive of subsequent diagnoses involving motor delay.
CONCLUSION: Only through early identification of developmental motor delays, initially with screening tools such as the HINT, is it possible to provide referrals for early intervention that could benefit both the infant and the family. Copyright© the College of Family Physicians of Canada.