A STUDY TO ANALYZE THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE BODY WEIGHT AND MUSCLE TONE WITH AMIEL-TISON ANGLES IN PRETERM INFANTS FROM 32 WEEKS TO 40 WEEKS OF CORRECTED GESTATIONAL AGE Arockia Pramila.C 1 ,    Rajeswari.M * 2 . 1 Physiotherapist, Sri Ramachandra University, Porur Chennai, Tamilnadu, India. *2  Assistant professor, Sri Ramachandra University, Porur Chennai,Tamilnadu, India. Corresponding   Author :   Rajeswari.   M,   Assistant   Professor,   Faculty   of   Physiotherapy,   Sri   Ramachandra   University,   Porur,   Chennai   600116, Tamilnadu, India. Phone: +919841417473. E-Mail:  rajeswarim2001@gmail.com ABSTRACT Background:    Periodical   neurological   and   neuro   developmental   assessment   is   necessary   to   identify   the   subtle   deficits   in   preterm   infants (PTI).   Muscle   tone   assessment   is   an   integral   part   of   the   neurological   evaluation   which   is   widely   assessed   by   Amiel-Tison   angles   (ATA). Passive    muscle    tone    depends    on    the    passive    extensibility    of    muscles    which    is    influenced    by    size    and    length    of    muscle    fibers    that contributes   for   body   weight.   This   study   aims   to   analyze   the   relationship   between   body   weight   and   muscle   tone   in   PTI   from   32   to   40   weeks of corrected gestational age (CGA). Materials   and   Methods:      This   Cross-sectional   study   was   carried   out   in   22   PTI   with   CGA   of   32   weeks   and   23   fullterm      infants   (FTI)   who   met the   inclusion   criteria   and   were   recruited   from   the   Neonatal   intensive   care   unit   and   postnatal   wards.   The   PTI   were   assessed   for   body weight   and   ATA   with   Goniometer   at   32   weeks   ±   2days,   34weeks   ±2days   and   40   weeks   ±2days   of   CGA.   23   Term   infants   were   assessed within 2 to 4 days of birth for body weight and ATA. Results:   Pearson’s   correlation   was   used   to   analyze   the   relationship   between   body   weight   and   muscle   tone   in   PTI   from   32   to   40   weeks   of CGA and in FTI. The results showed a negative correlation between body weight and Muscle tone in PTI with a significant p value <0.05. Conclusion:   The   study   concludes   that   there   is   an   influence   of   body   weight   on   ATA   in   PTI   which   conveys   that   increased   body   weight reduces   the   extensibility   of   the   muscles   and   thereby   reducing   the   ATA   and   vice   versa.   The   result   emphasizes   that   clinicians   should   consider body weight while identifying and interpreting subtle tonal abnormalities and initiating early intervention in the initial period of PTI. KEY WORDS: Preterm, Passive Extensibility, Amiel Tison angles, Goniometer, Relationship. References 1 . 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