A prospective randomized controlled study on mouse nerve growth factor in the treatment of global developmental delay in children.

OBJECTIVES To study the clinical effect of mouse nerve growth factor (mNGF) in the treatment of children with global developmental delay (GDD). METHODS A prospective clinical trial was conducted in 60 children with GDD who were treated in the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University between July 2016 and July 2017. These children were randomly divided into two groups: conventional rehabilitation treatment and mNGF treatment group (n=30 each). The children in the conventional rehabilitation treatment group were given neurodevelopmental therapy, and those in the mNGF treatment group were given mNGF treatment in addition to the treatment in the control group. The evaluation results of the Gesell Developmental Scale were compared between the two groups before and after treatment. RESULTS Before treatment and after 1.5 months of treatment, there was no significant difference in the developmental quotient (DQ) of each functional area of the Gesell Developmental Scale between the mNGF treatment and conventional rehabilitation treatment groups (P>0.05). After 3 months of treatment, the mNGF treatment group had significantly higher DQs of gross motor, fine motor, and personal-social interaction than the conventional rehabilitation treatment group (P˂0.05). The incidence rate of transient injection site pain after injection of mNGF was 7% (2/30), and there was no epilepsy or other serious adverse reactions. CONCLUSIONS In children with GDD, routine rehabilitation training combined with mNGF therapy can significantly improve their cognitive, motor, and social abilities.