Annika Lind

Cognitive and neuropsychological outcomes at 5 years of age in preterm children born in the 2000s

Aim  The aim of this study was to assess the cognitive level and neuropsychological performance at 5 years of age in children with a very low birthweight (VLBW; birthweight <1501g) born in 2001 to 2003.

Antenatal and Postnatal Growth and 5-Year Cognitive Outcome in Very Preterm Infants

OBJECTIVES: To study how antenatal growth affects cognitive outcome in very preterm infants and to determine whether there is an association between growth in any particular time period between birth and 5 years of age and cognitive outcome. Small for gestational age (SGA) and non-SGA infants were analyzed separately, because antenatal growth may affect postnatal growth. METHODS: Very low birth weight (<1501 g) infants born between 2001 and 2006 and infants born at <32 gestational weeks between 2004 and 2006 who were treated at Turku University Hospital (n = 181) were followed. Weight, length, and head circumference (HC) of the infants were measured at 9 time points between birth and 5 years. The growth was determined as a z score change between measurement points. Cognitive development was assessed at 5 years of age with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence–Revised. The association between growth and full-scale IQ (FSIQ) was studied. RESULTS: Growth in length and height was not associated with 5-year cognitive outcome. However, weight (r = 0.18, P = .04) and HC growth (r = 0.25, P = .01) between birth and 2 years of corrected age correlated to FSIQ in non-SGA children. In SGA children, HC growth (r = 0.33, P = .03) around term age correlated to FSIQ. CONCLUSIONS: Cognitive outcome was similar in SGA and non-SGA very preterm infants. Growth affected cognition positively in both subgroups, but the critical time period was different.

Predictive value of neonatal brain MRI on the neurodevelopmental outcome of preterm infants by 5 years of age.

To study the prognostic value of MRI in preterm infants at term equivalent age for cognitive development at 5 years of age.

Chorioamnionitis and Five-Year Neurodevelopmental Outcome in Preterm Infants

Background: Chorioamnionitis, a risk factor for preterm delivery, has been suggested to be associated with suboptimal neurological development in premature infants. Objective: To evaluate the association between chorioamnionitis and neurodevelopment in preterm infants at 5 years of age. Methods Very low birth weight and very low gestational age infants (n = 197) were recruited. Placental samples (n = 117) were evaluated for histological chorioamnionitis. Fetal histological chorioamnionitis was analyzed as a subgroup. The diagnosis of clinical chorioamnionitis was derived from medical records. Neurodevelopmental impairments were evaluated at 2 years of age, and cognitive development (n = 188) and neuropsychological performance (n = 193) were evaluated at 5 years of age. Results: There were no associations between histological or clinical chorioamnionitis and neurodevelopmental impairments at 2 years of age. Clinical chorioamnionitis and fetal histological chorioamnionitis were not associated with cognitive development or neuropsychological performance, but histological chorioamnionitis was associated with poorer cognitive outcome (regression coefficient = -7.22, 95% CI: -14.31 to -0.13) and weaker memory and learning functions (regression coefficient = -1.29, 95% CI: -2.40 to -0.18) at 5 years of age. Conclusion: Our study findings do not support clinical chorioamnionitis having a major independent role in the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental problems in very preterm infants. Histological chorioamnionitis was associated with slightly less optimal performance at 5 years of age, but further studies are needed to verify the clinical significance of these findings.

The prevalence and predictive value of weak language skills in children with very low birth weight – a longitudinal study

Previous findings regarding the prevalence and predictive value of weak language skills in preterm children with very low birth weight (VLBW) are unclear. This study analysed the prevalence of weak language skills, the predictive value of early weak language skills on later weak language skills, and the sensitivity and specificity of cognitive scores for identifying concurrent weak language skills in a longitudinal sample of VLBW children (n = 141) and their full‐term controls (n = 146).

Five-year follow-up of prematurely born children with postnatally developing caudothalamic cysts

Aim:  To assess the long‐term developmental outcome of very low birth weight children with postnatally developing caudothalamic cysts.

Do the early development of gestures and receptive and expressive language predict language skills at 5;0 in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight children?

UNLABELLED It is unclear what the predictive value of very early development of gestures and language is on later language ability in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight (VLBW; birth weight ≤1500g) children. The aim of the present study was to analyse the predictive value of early gestures and a receptive lexicon measured between the ages of 0;9 and 1;3, as well as the predictive value of receptive and expressive language ability at 2;0 for language skills at 5;0 in VLBW children. The subjects were 29 VLBW children and 28 full-term children whose language development has been followed intensively between the ages of 0;9 and 2;0 using the Finnish version of the MacArthur Developmental Inventory and the Reynell Developmental Language Scales (RDLS III). At 5;0, five selected verbal subtests of the Nepsy II test and the Boston Naming Test (BNT) were used to assess childrens language skills. For the first time in VLBW children, the development of gestures measured between the ages of 0;9 and 1;3 was shown to correlate significantly and positively with language skills at 5;0. In addition, both receptive and expressive language ability measured at 2;0 correlated significantly and positively with later language skills in both groups. Moreover, according to the hierarchical regression analysis, the receptive language score of the RDLS III at 2;0 was a clear and significant predictor for language skills at 5;0 in both groups. The findings particularly underline the role of early receptive language as a significant predictor for later language ability in VLBW children. The results provide evidence for a continuity between early language development and later language skills. LEARNING OUTCOMES After reading this article, readers will understand the associations between the very early (≤2 years of age) development of gestures and language (i.e. early receptive lexicon, expressive lexicon at 2;0, receptive and expressive language ability at 2;0) and the language skills at 5;0 in prematurely born very-low-birth-weight (VLBW) children. In addition, readers will understand the heterogeneity of the group of VLBW children. The information presented in this article is informative for those who work in a clinical context and who want to be able to identify those VLBW children who need support for their language development at an early age.

Contents Vol. 110, 2016

K. Allegaert, Leuven S. Andersson, Helsinki E. Bancalari, Miami, Fla. D. Bassler, Zurich C. Bührer, Berlin W. Carlo, Birmingham, Ala. Y.-S. Chang, Seoul R. Christensen, Salt Lake City, Utah T. Curstedt, Stockholm C. Dani, Florence B. Darlow, Christchurch H. Hagberg, Gothenburg M. Hallman, Oulu J.E. Harding, Auckland W.W. Hay Jr., Aurora, Colo. H.H. Hummler, Ulm S.E. Juul, Seattle, Wash. M. Kaplan, Jerusalem B. Kramer, Maastricht R.J. Martin, Cleveland, Ohio W. McGuire, York J. Neu, Gainesville, Fla. P.C. Ng, Hong Kong W.S. Park, Seoul N.J. Robertson, London C. Roehr, Oxford E. Saliba, Tours O.D. Saugstad, Oslo M.P. Sherman, Columbia, Mo. E.S. Shinwell, Tsfat J. Smith, Tygerberg R.F. Soll, Burlington, Vt. (Cochrane Review Updates) J. Soul, Boston, Mass. B. Sun, Shanghai N. Takahashi, Tokyo B. Thébaud, Ottawa, Ont. D. Tibboel, Rotterdam N. Vain, Buenos Aires F. van Bel, Utrecht J.N. van den Anker, Washington, D.C. M. Vento Torres, Valencia F.J. Walther, Leiden J.A. Widness, Iowa City, Iowa T.F. Yeh, Taipei Fetal and Neonatal Research