A description of the Griffiths III scores in a cohort of HIV-exposed and HIV-unexposed South African children at 9 months of age

Background. The Griffiths Mental Developmental Scales (GMDS) is a developmental tool commonly used in South Africa (SA). The most recent version, the GMDS III (Griffiths III) was standardised in the UK and the Republic of Ireland and published in 2016. Objectives. To describe neurodevelopmental scores using the Griffiths III, demographics and confounding variables, in children aged 8 - 10 months, living in an urban setting in Cape Town, SA. To compare the scores between children who were HIV-exposed and -uninfected (CHEU) and children who were HIV-unexposed and -uninfected (CHUU). Method. We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional data analysis of 85 infants with completed Griffiths III assessments at 8 to 10 months of age. This is a substudy of a prospective, longitudinal descriptive study describing neuroimaging and neurodevelopmental outcomes in 31 CHUU and 54 CHEU. Results. Across all Griffiths III subscales, SA infants tested between average and very superior ranges in raw and quotient scores and between 63rd and 76th percentiles. They outperformed the UK normative sample. Caregivers of CHUUs highest level of education was significantly higher than caregivers of CHEU (p=0.002). CHUU scored higher on the eye and hand coordination scale compared with CHEU (p=0.02). Conclusion. Due to favourable developmental scores achieved by South African children in comparison to the standardised sample, the revision of the Griffiths Scales to the Griffiths III is likely to have clinical use in SA infants.