Work

Psychomotor development in children aged 12–23 months from communities in southern Ecuador: a descriptive research note

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To describe psychomotor development in children aged 12 to 23 months from rural and urban communities in southern Ecuador using the Abbreviated Development Scale (EAD-1). RESULTS: A total of 138 children were evaluated in the cantons of Calvas and Gonzanamá (56.5% male; mean age 17.75 months [95% CI: 17.14-18.36]). Most participants were classified in the medium developmental category (51.4%), while 24.6% were categorized in the alert level. The personal-social domain showed the highest proportion of alert classifications (42.8%), followed by the hearing-language and gross motor domains (28.3% each). Fine motor-adaptive performance showed more favorable distributions, with most children classified in the medium and medium-high categories. These findings reflect developmental performance within a non-probabilistic sample and should be interpreted as descriptive.

Source: BMC Research Notes

DOI: 10.1186/s13104-026-07896-2

Authors: Diana Estefanía Vásquez-Muñoz, Blanca Priscila Maldonado-Pacheco, Samuel Olegario Iñiguez-Jimenez

Institution: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador

Language: English

Topic: Child Nutrition and Water Access

Subfield: Nutrition and Dietetics

Field: Nursing

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,690