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Updated: Jun 28, 2026
Preterm EEG: A Multimodal Neurophysiological Protocol
Published on: February 18, 2012
A comparison of executive function in very preterm and term infants at 8 months corrected age
Jing Sun1, Heather Mohay, Michael O'Callaghan
1School of Public Health, Griffith University, Logan Campus, Meadowbrook, Q4131, Australia. j.sun@griffith.edu.au
Insights
Very preterm infants show poorer executive function (EF) at 8 months corrected age compared to full-term infants. These early EF differences persist even after accounting for developmental scores and confounding factors.
Area of Science:
- Developmental neuroscience
- Pediatric medicine
- Cognitive psychology
Background:
- Executive function (EF) develops throughout childhood and is crucial for learning and attention.
- Executive dysfunction is linked to attention and learning issues in school-aged children.
- Infants born very preterm are at higher risk for these developmental challenges.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare executive function (EF) in very preterm infants versus full-term infants.
- Assessment conducted at 8 months corrected age (after expected due date).
Main Methods:
- Study included 37 very preterm infants (gestation ≤32 weeks, birthweight <1250g) and 74 healthy full-term infants.
- Executive function tasks assessed working memory, inhibition, and planning.
- Bayley Scales of Infant Development II (BSID II) measured Mental Development Index (MDI) and Psychomotor Development Index (PDI).
Main Results:
- Very preterm infants performed significantly worse on all EF measures compared to full-term infants.
- No differences found in infant temperament, maternal education, income, or well-being.
- Lower MDI and PDI scores in preterm infants did not fully explain EF deficits.
- Medical complications, lower birthweight, and shorter gestation adversely impacted EF.
Conclusions:
- Very preterm infants exhibit poorer executive function at 8 months corrected age.
- Further research is needed to determine if infant EF predicts later learning and attention outcomes.
Background:
Executive function (EF) emerges in infancy and continues to develop throughout childhood. Executive dysfunction is believed to contribute to learning and attention problems in children at school age. Children born very preterm are more prone to these problems than their full-term peers.
Aim:
To compare EF in very preterm and full-term infants at 8 months after expected date of delivery.
Subjects:
37 very preterm infants without identified disabilities, and 74 gender and age matched healthy full-term infants. The very preterm infants were all
Outcome Measures:
EF tasks which measured working memory, inhibition of distraction, and planning at 8 months after expected date of delivery.
Results:
The very preterm infants performed significantly more poorly than the full-term infants on all measures of executive function. No significant differences were found between very preterm and full-term infants on any of potentially confounding variables of, infant temperament, maternal education, family income and maternal psychological wellbeing. Very preterm infants had significantly lower scores on the Mental Development Index (MDI) and Psychomotor Development Index (PDI) on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID II), however when this was partialled out the differences in EF scores remained. Medical complications, lower birthweight and lower gestation age were all found to adversely affect the performance of very preterm infants on executive function tasks.
Conclusion:
Very preterm infants performed more poorly than full-term infants on measures of EF. Further follow up studies are required to investigate whether EF measures in infancy can predict learning and attention outcome at school age.
