Purpose: The aim of this study was to review the available scientific literature on the possible relationship between the visual system and motor development in children.Methods: This study was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) statement recommendations. The review protocol is available in PROSPERO (CRD42021245341). Four different databases, namely Scopus, PubMed, CINAHL and Web of Science, were assessed from April 2005 to February 2021. To determine the quality of the articles, we used the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) Quality Appraisal Scale, and a protocol was followed to define the levels of evidence on the basis of the Centre for Evidence‐Based Medicine Levels of Evidence. The search strategy included terms describing motor development in children and adolescents with visual disorders.Results: Among the identified studies, 23 were included in the study. All selected articles examined the relationship between the visual system and development in children. The quality of most of the studies was moderate–high, and they were between evidence levels 2 and 4.Conclusions: Our systematic review revealed that all included studies established a relationship between the visual system and development in children. However, the methods for measuring the visual system and motor skills lacked uniformity.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a clinical diagnosis based on a combination of clinical and neurological signs, which occurs between the ages of 12 and 24 months. Cerebral palsy or a high risk of cerebral palsy can be accurately predicted before 5–6 months, which is the corrected age. This would allow the initiation of intervention at an early stage. Parents must be more involved in the development and implementation of the early therapy, increasing opportunities for parent–child interaction. The aim of this study was to learn from the perspectives of families with children under 12 months with unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP), what ingredients (barriers and facilitators) should be involved in early intervention so that we could co-design (researchers and families) a multidisciplinary guideline for a global intervention addressed to the needs of the child and the family. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at a time and venue convenient for the families. A total of ten families with experience in early intervention were invited to attend the interview with open questions: (1) What components should early intervention have for a baby diagnosed with UCP? (2) What components should early intervention have for the family? (3) What should the involvement of the family be in early intervention? (4) What barriers included in early intervention should be removed? From the data analysis, three key topics emerged and were subsequently named by focus group participants: (1) UCP early intervention components, (2) family involvement in early intervention of UCP, and (3) removing barriers and creating facilitators within early intervention. The participation of the families (mothers) in the co-design of the necessary ingredients within the scope of a multidisciplinary early intervention guide aimed at children with UCP under 12 months allows learning about their reality and not that of the therapist. The following list highlights the present barriers as perceived by the parents: intervention as spectators, therapeutic goals, clinic environment, and lack of empathy, and the possible facilitators determined by the parents during the implementation comprised teamwork, the family’s goals, motivation during the intervention, and learning at home. Thus, an early intervention program to improve global functionality should address family involvement through multidisciplinary coaching and the modification of the environment, encouraging family goals and family support through the family–therapist team.

The abilities of children diagnosed with Obstetric Brachial Palsy (OBP) are limited by brachial plexus injuries. Thus, their participation in the community is hindered, which involves a lower quality of life due to worse performance in activities of daily living as a consequence of the functional limitations of the affected upper limb. Conventional Mirror Therapy (Conventional MT) and Virtual Therapy improve the affected upper limb functionality. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare the effects of Conventional MT and Virtual Reality MT on the spontaneous use of the affected upper limb and quality of life of children with upper Obstetric Brachial Palsy between 6 and 12 years of age. A randomized pilot study was performed. Twelve children were randomly assigned to perform Conventional Mirror Therapy or Virtual Reality Mirror Therapy for four weeks. Ten children completed the treatment. Two assessments (pre/post-intervention) were carried out to assess the spontaneous use of the affected upper limb and the quality of life using the Children’s Hand-use Experience Questionnaire (CHEQ) and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory Generic Core Scales (PedsQL TM 4.0), respectively. There was a statistically significant increment in spontaneous use, observed in independent tasks (p = 0.02) and in the use of the affected hand with grasp (p = 0.04), measured with the CHEQ, for the Virtual Reality MT group. There were no statistically significant changes (p > 0.05) for the Conventional MT group in the spontaneous use of the affected upper limb. Regarding the quality of life, statistically significant changes were obtained in the Physical and Health activity categories of the parents’ questionnaire (p = 0.03) and in the total score of the children’s questionnaire (p = 0.04) in the Virtual Reality MT group, measured using the PedsQL TM 4.0. Statistically significant changes were not obtained for the quality of life in the Conventional MT group. This study suggests that, compared to Conventional MT, Virtual Reality MT would be a home-based therapeutic complement to increase independent bimanual tasks using grasp in the affected upper limb and improve the quality of life of children diagnosed with upper OBP in the age range of 6–12 years.

Background: Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is a developmental disorder in which numerous comorbidities seem to coexist, such as motor and visual impairment and some executive functions; Methods: A narrative review on motor and visual deficits in children with DCD was carried out; Results and Discussion: Fine and gross motor skills are affected in children with DCD. In addition, they seem to be related to visual deficits, such as difficulty in visual perception, sensory processing and visual memory. Limitations have also been found in accommodation. Interventions in children with DCD should be aimed at improving both aspects, since vision affects motor skills and vice versa; Conclusions: In children with DCD, who present a marked deficit in global shape processing, it causes an association between deficiencies in visual perception and motor skills.

This study aimed to examine motor performance and somatosensory processing of unilateral cerebral palsy (UCP) children in both the less-affected hand and the more-affected hand. This study is also ...