A medical skateboard that allows very premature babies to propel themselves soon after birth reduces delays in their motor development.
About a third of babies are born very premature – Before 32 weeks of pregnancy – development of motor impairment including delayed walking and running, fine motor problems such as difficulty catching a ball, or in severe cases, conditions such as cerebral palsy.
One reason for this is that premature babies have less time to exercise inside the supportive environment of the uterus to move their organs and develop their muscles, says Marian Barbu-Roth at Paris City University, France.
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