[Development deficit risks in the late premature newborn: Evaluation at 48 months using the Ages & Stages...

Lack of specific monitoring protocols hinders the knowledge of the impact of late prematurity on delayed psychomotor development. The objective of this study is to evaluate this at 48 months and compare it with those born at term.

A retrospective cohort study was conducted on 90 late preterm (PT) and 89 term (AT) healthy children at 48 months, assessed by the Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ-3). Continuous variables described using mean and standard deviation compared with the t Student t test for independent samples. The categorical variables were described as frequencies and proportions, compared with the Chi-square test of independence. A cut-off was determined for the total score of ASQ-3 able to discriminate the risk of developmental deficit by a ROC analysis. A step-wise logistic regression model identified the associated risk factors.

The mean scores for each domain and overall ASQ-3 score showed no differences between groups. However, when analyzing the probability density for the ASQ-3 total score of ≤251 points, 15 PT (16.6%) and 4 AT (4.5%) showed risk of psychomotor deficits, and late prematurity and lack of breastfeeding were significantly associated factors.

There is an increased prevalence of risk of development deficit in the PT, which justifies considering this population at risk and establishing effective monitoring programs. It should be further investigated whether this risk corresponds to the entire population, or if there are biological factors or perinatal history that makes them more vulnerable.