Associations of preterm and early-term birth with suspected developmental coordination disorder: a national retrospective cohort study in children aged 3–10 years

Background This study analyzed the motor development and suspected developmental coordination disorder of very and moderately preterm (< 34 +0 gestational age), late preterm (34 +0 –36 +6 gestational week), and early-term (37 +0 –38 +6 gestational week) children compared to their full-term peers with a national population-based sample in China. Methods A total of 1673 children (799 girls, 874 boys) aged 3–10 years old were individually assessed with the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-second edition (MABC-2). The association between gestational age and motor performance of children was analyzed using a multilevel regression model. Results The global motor performance [ β = – 5.111, 95% confidence interval (CI) = – 9.200 to – 1.022; P = 0.015] and balance ( β = – 5.182, 95% CI = – 5.055 to – 1.158; P = 0.003) for very and moderately preterm children aged 3–6 years old were significantly lower than their full-term peers when adjusting for confounders. Late preterm and early-term children showed no difference. Moreover, very and moderately preterm children aged 3–6 years had a higher risk of suspected developmental coordination disorder (DCD) (≤ 5 percentile of MABC-2 score) when adjusting for potential confounders [odds ratio (OR) = 2.931, 95% CI = 1.067–8.054; P = 0.038]. Late preterm and early-term children showed no difference in motor performance from their full-term peers (each P > 0.05). Conclusions Our findings have important implications for understanding motor impairment in children born at different gestational ages. Very and moderately preterm preschoolers have an increased risk of DCD, and long-term follow-up should be provided for early detection and intervention.