General movements assessment

A general movements assessment is a type of medical assessment used in the diagnosis of cerebral palsy,[1] and is particularly used to follow up high-risk neonatal cases.[2] The general movements assessment involves measuring movements that occur spontaneously among those less than four months of age and appears to be most accurate test for the condition.[1][3]

Brain w/ white matter structure shown

These include the tonic neck reflex, grasp reflex, Moro reflex, tongue thrust reflex and rooting reflexes.[4] The quality of the child's general movements gives information about how the brain connects, particularly the periventricular white matter.[5]

The GMA is best performed 3 months post-term (if the child was born prematurely, the assessment date is not at three months old, but is conducted at the same time as if they were born at term).[5] At around that time, in typical infants, a pattern called 'fidgety movements' is evident, and if the movements are abnormal or the fidgety movements are not apparent, the child is at risk of developing CP.[6] A pattern known as 'writhing movements' frequently gives false positives for cerebral palsy.[7]