Background: To analyze the influence of body position on the motor development of preterm infants in the first year of life corrected for prematurity. Methods: This controlled, randomized, open trial included 30 preterm infants randomly assigned to one of the following three groups: prone group (n = 9), supine group (n = 10), and control group (n = 11). Intervention: Motor development was assessed at four time points using the Alberta Infant Motor Scale: first outpatient visit and at 4, 8 and 12 months corrected age. Results: In the third assessment at 8 months corrected age, the supine group exhibited better motor development than the other groups (p = 0.02). In the control group, the number of infants with normal development decreased from 11 (100%) in the first assessment to 5 (45.45%) in the last assessment. Most infants of mothers who received guidance on body positioning achieved normal motor development in the first year of life (63.1%). Greater dispersion from normal Alberta Infant Motor Scale scores was observed in infants at 8 and 12 months of age. Conclusions: Guidance on body positioning of preterm infants at home appears to have a positive influence in the first year of life. Child care strategies after hospitalization should be supported to permit full development of the child.

The authors have declared no competing interest.

RBR-6q6ck3

Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior;Brasil (CAPES), Finance Code 001.

I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained.

Yes

The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below:

The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Franca University (Approval No. 2.407.182 final report) and is registered with the Brazilian Clinical Trials Registry (RBR-6q6ck3). In the present study, all participants had the informed consent signed by those responsible for the children. The custody of the documents are with the author of this study, Marisa Brunherotti.

I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals.

Yes

I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance).

Yes

I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable.

Yes

All data produced in the present work are contained in the manuscript.