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Published on: November 20, 2015
[Early intellectual developmental outcome of late preterm infants]
Teng-Wei Zhang1, Fa-Tao Lin, Yan-Yan Song
1Department of Neonatology, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou 510623, China. yansong84@126.com.
Insights
Late preterm infants show early intellectual developmental delays compared to full-term infants. Regular neurodevelopmental monitoring is crucial for these vulnerable infants.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal development
- Pediatric neurology
- Developmental pediatrics
Background:
- Late preterm infants (34-36 weeks gestation) are at increased risk for developmental issues.
- Early identification of developmental trajectories is essential for timely intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the early intellectual developmental outcomes of late preterm infants.
- To compare the neurodevelopmental assessments of late preterm and full-term infants.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 106 late preterm infants and 120 full-term infants were assessed.
- Neonatal Behavioral Neurological Assessment (NBNA) was performed at 40 weeks corrected age.
- Gesell Developmental Scale was administered at 3, 6, and 12 months corrected age.
Main Results:
- Late preterm infants exhibited significantly lower NBNA scores compared to full-term infants.
- At 3, 6, and 12 months, preterm infants showed deficits in gross motor, fine motor, and social competence.
- Adaptability scores were also significantly lower in preterm infants at 6 and 12 months.
Conclusions:
- Late preterm infants experience early intellectual developmental delays.
- Neurodevelopmental monitoring is essential for late preterm infants to ensure optimal outcomes.
Objective:
To investigate the early intellectual developmental outcome of late preterm infants.
Methods:
A total of 106 late preterm infants with a gestational age of 34-36+6 weeks who were admitted to the neonatal ward between January 2012 and January 2015, cured, discharged, and regularly followed up at the outpatient service for high-risk children were enrolled as the preterm group. A total of 120 healthy full-term infants during the same period were randomly selected as the term group. Neonatal behavioral neurological assessment (NBNA) was performed for late preterm infants at a corrected gestational age of 40 weeks and full-term infants at a gestational age of 40 weeks. The Gesell Developmental Scale was used for late preterm infants at a corrected age of 3, 6, and 12 months and full-term infants at an age of 3, 6, and 12 months.
Results:
The preterm group had an NBNA score of <37 and a significantly lower NBNA score than the term group (P<0.05). At the corrected age of 3 months, the preterm group had significantly lower scores of gross motor, fine motor, and social competence than the term group (P<0.05). At the corrected age of 6 months, the preterm group had significantly lower scores of adaptability, gross motor, and fine motor than the term group (P<0.05). At the corrected age of 12 months, the preterm group had significantly lower scores of adaptability, gross motor, and social competence than the term group (P<0.05).
Conclusions:
Late preterm infants have early intellectual developmental delay. It is necessary to perform neurodevelopmental monitoring for late preterm infants.
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