Matern Child Health J

Objective:Gross motor development in early childhood is important in fostering greater interaction with the environment. The purpose of this study is to describe gross motor skills among US children aged 3\u20135 years using the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2).Methods:We used 2012 NHANES National Youth Fitness Survey (NNYFS) data, which included TGMD-2 scores obtained according to an established protocol. Outcome measures included locomotor and object control raw and age-standardized scores. Means and standard errors were calculated for demographic and weight status with SUDAAN using sample weights to calculate nationally representative estimates, and survey design variables to account for the complex sampling methods.Results:The sample included 339 children aged 3\u20135 years. As expected, locomotor and object control raw scores increased with age. Overall mean standardized scores for locomotor and object control were similar to the mean value previously determined using a normative sample. Girls had a higher mean locomotor, but not mean object control, standardized score than boys (p 0.05).Conclusions:In a nationally representative sample of US children aged 3\u20135 years, TGMD-2 mean locomotor and object control standardized scores were similar to the established mean. These results suggest that standardized gross motor development among young children generally did not differ by demo- graphic or weight status.CC999999/ImCDC/Intramural CDC HHS/United States2019-09-08T00:00:00Z28197817PMC6732219666