[Assessment of spontaneous motor activity in young infants: an effective method for the detection of brain function disorders].

A method for the assessment of the brain function of young infants was recently introduced. It consists of evaluation of the quality of spontaneously generated generalized movements (general movements, GMs). GMs appear at an early stage of pregnancy and persist until approximately the 4th month after term. Normal GMs are characterized by the triad of complexity, variation and fluency. Mildly abnormal GMs. indicating mild dysfunction of the nervous system, are not fluent but jerky or stiff. Markedly abnormal GMs, indicating major nervous system dysfunction, are characterized mostly by absence of complexity and variation of the movements: the movements are monotonous and stereotyped. The quality of the GMs can be evaluated by means of so-called global Gestalt perception. The technique can be learned in a few days. The quality of the GMs has a clear predictive significance for the child's development. Children with normal GMs will be free of handicaps in later life, whereas three-quarters of the children showing clearly abnormal GMs throughout the postnatal GM period do develop handicaps. Assessment of the quality of the GMs is a relatively cheap, non-invasive method of evaluating the current and future brain function of young infants.