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Hand preference of four-year-old children: its relationship to premature birth and neurodevelopmental outcome
1Department of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, Cornell University Medical College, New York, New York.
Insights
Premature birth complications may affect children's hand preference and neurodevelopment. Preterm children showed less right-handedness and higher rates of developmental issues compared to term-born peers.
Area of Science:
- Developmental neuroscience
- Pediatric neurology
- Child psychology
Background:
- Hand preference is a complex trait influenced by genetics and environment.
- Premature birth and very low birthweight are associated with increased risks for developmental challenges.
- Cerebral insult during development can impact motor and cognitive functions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between premature birth, hand preference, and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children.
- To compare hand preference patterns in preterm and term-born children.
- To explore the association between non-right-handedness and cognitive/linguistic deficits in preterm infants.
Main Methods:
- Hand preference was assessed at age four years in 98 preterm and 54 term-born children.
- Parental hand preference data was also collected.
- Preterm children underwent assessments for IQ, expressive language, speech articulation, and neurological status at age three years.
Main Results:
- A significantly lower proportion of preterm children were right-handed compared to term-born children.
- Preterm non-right-handed children were more likely to exhibit lower IQs, expressive language delays, and articulation problems.
- In preterm children with IQs ≥ 85, left-handedness or mixed-handedness did not correlate with increased language/speech issues.
Conclusions:
- Birth complications potentially lead to cerebral insults that can alter hand preference.
- Altered hand preference in preterm infants may co-occur with impaired mental and motor development.
- These findings support the hypothesis linking birth complications to neurodevelopmental alterations.
Abstract:
Information was obtained at age four years on the hand preference of 98 children who had been born prematurely with a very low birthweight and of 54 children born at term with no birth complications. Data were also collected on the hand preference of their parents. The preterm children had been assessed at age three years for IQ, expressive language, speech articulation and neurological status. A significantly lower proportion of preterm than of term children used their right hand for unimanual activities. Furthermore, those preterm children who were not right-handed were significantly more likely to have lower IQs, expressive language delays and articulation problems. Among preterm children with IQs greater than or equal to 85, language and speech problems were no more likely to occur in those who preferred the left hand or who used both hands than in those who preferred the right. The findings of this study support the theory that birth complications lead to cerebral insult which may alter hand preference, and at the same time affect mental and motor development.