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Executive functions in school-age children born very prematurely

Sarah Bayless1, Jim Stevenson

  • 1School of Psychology, University of Southampton, University Road, Highfield, Southampton, SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom. sarah.bayless@sickkids.ca

Early Human Development
|July 14, 2006
PubMed

Insights

Very preterm children exhibit mild executive function and attention deficits, even with average IQ. These specific cognitive weaknesses are crucial for understanding outcomes associated with preterm birth.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Pediatric Neurodevelopment

Background:

  • School-age children born very preterm are at increased risk for cognitive impairments.
  • Executive Dysfunction and lower average IQ are common challenges faced by this population.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To assess the performance of very preterm school-age children on key Executive Function (EF) components.
  • To evaluate executive attention and IQ in very preterm children compared to term-born peers.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study comparing 40 very preterm (<32 weeks GA) children with 41 term-born controls (ages 6-12).
  • Assessment included IQ, EF (inhibition, working memory, set shifting), and attention (sustained, selective).
  • Multivariate analyses of variance and covariance were employed for group comparisons.

Main Results:

  • Preterm children demonstrated significantly lower scores in Executive Function and executive attention compared to controls.
  • The preterm group's IQ scores fell within the low-average range.
  • Specific EF difficulties were noted in shifting and inhibition, with shifting performance independent of IQ.

Conclusions:

  • Very preterm children experience mild executive function and attention difficulties alongside average IQ.
  • Multivariate assessments are vital for identifying specific cognitive weaknesses linked to preterm birth, beyond general intellectual outcomes.
Abstract

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