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Early developmental trajectories of preterm infants

Maya Yaari1, David Mankuta2, Ayelet Harel-Gadassi1

  • 1Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.

Research in Developmental Disabilities
|November 9, 2017
PubMed

Insights

Extremely and very preterm infants show developmental disadvantages compared to full-term infants, with gaps widening over time. Moderate preterm infants have better outcomes but still face vulnerabilities.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Neonatal Medicine
  • Pediatric Neurology

Background:

  • Preterm infants face heightened risks for neurodevelopmental impairments.
  • Understanding early developmental trajectories is crucial for timely interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To delineate and compare early developmental trajectories of preterm and full-term infants.
  • To identify factors influencing these trajectories.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal evaluation of cognitive, language, and motor development using Mullen Scales.
  • Inclusion of extremely preterm (EPT), very preterm (VPT), moderately preterm (MPT), and full-term (FT) infants.
  • Statistical analysis using mixed models with covariates for gender, maternal education, and neurobehavior.

Main Results:

  • EPT and VPT infants demonstrated significantly lower scores across all domains compared to FT infants, with an increasing disparity over time.
  • MPT infants showed more favorable trajectories than EPT/VPT but lagged behind FT infants in specific subscales.
  • Male gender, lower maternal education, and abnormal neonatal neurobehavior were associated with poorer and less stable developmental outcomes.

Conclusions:

  • Preterm birth, particularly extreme and very preterm, is linked to significant developmental disadvantages.
  • Moderately preterm infants exhibit improved but still vulnerable developmental paths.
  • Predictive factors like gender, socioeconomic status, and neonatal health significantly impact developmental trajectories.
Abstract

Keywords:
Cognitive developmentDevelopmental trajectoriesLanguage developmentMotor developmentNeonatal neurobehaviorPreterm infants

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