Young Adult Motor, Sensory, and Cognitive Outcomes and Longitudinal Development after Very and Extremely Preterm...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Pediatrics
• Public Health

Background:

• Preterm birth before 32 weeks of gestation (wGA) affects neuromotor, cognitive, and attentional development.
• Understanding long-term adult outcomes for extremely preterm (<28 wGA) and very preterm survivors is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review adult outcomes following very and extremely preterm birth.
• To describe longitudinal development from childhood to adulthood.
• To focus on neuromotor, neurosensory, cognitive, executive function, and attentional abilities.

Main Methods:

• Narrative review of existing literature.
• Analysis of longitudinal data from childhood to adulthood.
• Focus on key developmental domains impacting academic and social participation.

Main Results:

• Preterm individuals exhibit a persistent higher risk for impairments in cognitive abilities, executive function, attention, and neuromotor skills into adulthood.
• Early childhood cognitive assessments can predict later outcomes, with poor early performance indicating unlikely catch-up and normal early performance sometimes showing accelerated development.
• While some studies report poorer educational, employment, and independent living outcomes, a significant proportion of preterm survivors report a similar quality of life to term-born peers.

Conclusions:

• Differences between preterm and term-born individuals persist into adulthood.
• Developmental trajectories for executive function and attention in preterm survivors show some inconsistency in available data.
• Despite challenges, many individuals born preterm achieve comparable quality of life and participate in society, highlighting the need for continued support and research.