Neonatal brainstem auditory function associates with early receptive language development in preterm children.

Area of Science:

• Neonatal Auditory Neuroscience
• Developmental Pediatrics
• Speech and Language Pathology

Background:

• Preterm infants are at increased risk for developmental delays, including language.
• Early auditory function assessment is crucial for identifying potential developmental issues.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between neonatal auditory function and language development at one year in preterm infants.
• To determine if brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP) measures predict later language outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective study of 155 preterm infants (birthweight ≤1500g and/or ≤32 gestational weeks).
• Neonatal auditory function assessed using brainstem auditory evoked potential (BAEP) and brainstem audiometry.
• Language development evaluated at mean corrected age of 1 year using the Finnish MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory.

Main Results:

• Slower auditory processing (longer interpeak interval I-V) in the right ear on BAEP was associated with smaller receptive lexicon size at 1 year (P=.043).
• Infants with longer IPI I-V were more likely to have deviant receptive lexicon size (≤17 words) (P=.033).
• Absence of contralateral response with right ear stimulation increased risk for deviant lexicon size (P=.049).

Conclusions:

• Impaired neonatal auditory function in preterm infants is linked to poorer receptive language outcomes at one year.
• BAEP assessment can help identify preterm children at risk for language development delays.
• Early auditory pathway assessment is vital for proactive intervention in high-risk infants.