All children develop at their own pace but need to meet certain milestones at different stages of their infancy. Kids that miss the milestones or are slower than other children of the same age are said to have developmental delays. Approximately 14% of all toddlers and preschoolers are classified as having a developmental delay.
Kids can delay in either gross motor development, fine motor skills, cognitive skills, speech, activities of daily living, social and emotional processing. If you’ve noticed that your child isn’t able to participate in certain activities or perform tasks with their peers, they may be experiencing a motor delay. Early assessment is key to alleviate any concerns that parents may have. If you are concerned about your child’s developmental growth, consult your pediatrician.
What Should You Do When You Notice Your Child Is Behind on Motor Development Milestones?
If your kid seems slow on any of the five skill areas, it is not always a source of concern. However, it is worth further examination by specialists. Knowing the common motor development milestones can help you develop an awareness of the average timeline for different activities. If your pediatrician suspects gross motor delay, they may refer your child to a pediatric physical therapist.
What Is Pediatric Physical Therapy?
Pediatric physical therapy focuses on kids, allowing your child to build enough strength and balance to achieve their motor development milestones. Pediatric PTs can assess the child’s developmental skill level, performing a thorough evaluation of the child’s muscle strength, posture, alignment, and balance. They can then recommend therapeutic exercises that are disguised in fun and games to make them suitable for younger patients.
The role of pediatric physical therapy is to work on the child, with the help from the family, allowing the kid to reach their maximum potential on body function. The activities provide strength and range of motion that children require to treat their motor development delays.
Conditions That May Benefit from Pediatric Physical Therapy in Everett
Developmental coordination disorder affects about 5% to 6% of school-aged children. While motor development delays aren’t normally a result of childhood disorders, kids suffering from certain conditions may have motor skill issues. Physical therapy is recommended for children with Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Down Syndrome, Spina Bifida, Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, and many more. Kids with orthopedic conditions such as scoliosis may also benefit.
What Makes Pediatric Physical Therapy Different?
Infants and young kids may not understand why they are in therapy, unlike adults. Physical therapists may find ways to make the exercises comfortable and fun for the children. It helps builds strength for their muscles that rectify their motor development delays.
In addition to PT, the therapists also collaborate with families to provide support, advocacy, and assistance necessary to enhance development. They will also make sure that your kid is making progress towards that skill by setting achievable goals and targets.
Time to Get Pediatric Physical Therapy
Pediatric physical therapy focuses on kids, allowing them to attain their motor development milestones. If you have further questions about physical therapy for children, book an appointment with Clear Speech Inc.
The post Why You Should Consider Pediatric Physical Therapy for Children with Motor Development Delay appeared first on Clear Speech Inc..
