Assessment of motor skills for children with autism on the M-ABC

Introduction and objectives. - Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by qualitative abnormalities in communication, social interaction and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors. Motor disorders are frequently found in this population without them being retained in the diagnostic. This study aims to assess the motor skills of children with autism using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (M-ABC) and compared to control children, by looking at the overall score of each of the 3 dimensions of M-ABC (ball skills/manual dexterity/balance) and results of each test for each dimension. Materials and methods. - Twenty-two boys aged 9 to 11 years participated in the study: 11 with autism without intellectual disabilities and 11 control children. All have achieved the M-ABC tests in similar conditions. Results. - Differences are observed between autism and controls in the three dimensions of the M-ABC (P<0.01) and more specifically on tests target (P<0.05) and walk or jump (P<0.05). Conclusion. - Differences between children with autism and controls are found in activities involving visual motor control and coordination, which are deficient in autism and would negatively affect their motor skills. (C) 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.