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Updated: Jul 19, 2026
Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations
Published on: July 1, 2015
Cortical recruitment patterns in children born prematurely compared with control subjects during a passive listening
Laura R Ment1, Bradley S Peterson, Betty Vohr
1Department of Pediatrics, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06520, USA. laura.ment@yale.edu
Insights
Children born prematurely utilize distinct brain networks for language processing, focusing on phonology rather than semantics. This alternative strategy supports similar phonological language scores compared to term-born peers.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Premature birth can impact neurodevelopment, potentially altering cognitive processing systems.
- Understanding alternative neural pathways for language development in preterm infants is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if individuals born prematurely develop alternative neural systems for language processing.
- To compare language processing in preterm and term-born children using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
Main Methods:
- fMRI passive listening task involving phonological and semantic language processing.
- Assessment of language skills using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF) and Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP).
- Comparison between 14 preterm children (600-1250g birthweight, no brain injury) and 10 matched term-born controls.
Main Results:
- fMRI revealed differential engagement of neural systems for language processing between groups.
- Term-born children predominantly activated semantic processing regions.
- Preterm children preferentially engaged phonological processing regions, despite similar CTOPP scores.
Conclusions:
- At 12 years old, preterm and term-born children show distinct neural activation patterns for auditory language processing.
- Preterm children's reliance on phonological processing networks is associated with comparable phonological language scores.
- These adaptive neural strategies may underpin the observed improvements in language skills among children born prematurely.
Objectives:
To use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to test the hypothesis that subjects who were born prematurely develop alternative systems for processing language.
Study Design:
Subjects who were born prematurely (n = 14; 600-1250 g birthweight) without neonatal brain injury and 10 matched term control subjects were examined with a fMRI passive listening task of language, the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF) and portions of the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing (CTOPP). The fMRI task was evaluated for both phonologic and semantic processing.
Results:
Although there were differences in CELF scores between the subjects born prematurely and control subjects, there were no significant differences in the CTOPP measures in the 2 groups. fMRI studies demonstrated that the groups differentially engaged neural systems known to process language. Children born at term were significantly more likely to activate systems for the semantic processing of language, whereas subjects born prematurely preferentially engaged regions that subserve phonology.
Conclusions:
At 12 years of age, children born prematurely and children born at term activate neural systems for the auditory processing of language differently. Subjects born prematurely engage different networks for phonologic processing; this strategy is associated with phonologic language scores that are similar to those of control subjects. These biologically based developmental strategies may provide the substrate for the improving language skills noted in children who are born prematurely.
