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Neonatal Hippocampal Volume and Parent Structuring at 18 Months in Relation to Cortisol Stress Regulation Across
Mia A McLean1, Joanne Weinberg2, Jillian V Miller3
1Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand.
Insights
For very preterm infants, smaller neonatal hippocampus size indicates vulnerability to parenting. Supportive parenting improves stress regulation and executive functions in these children.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Infants born very preterm (≤32 weeks gestational age) exhibit altered brain maturation and stress regulation, potentially impacting executive functions.
- Parenting support influences neurodevelopment, but children's susceptibility to these effects varies.
- Investigating the moderating role of supportive parenting on the link between neonatal brain structure, stress, and executive functions in very preterm children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine how supportive parenting moderates the relationship between neonatal hippocampal volume, childhood stress regulation, and executive functions in very preterm infants.
- To identify potential neurodevelopmental markers of susceptibility to environmental influences in this population.
Main Methods:
- Prospective longitudinal cohort study of 188 very preterm infants.
- Neonatal MRI for hippocampal volume assessment.
- Salivary cortisol (AUCg) measured at 1.5, 3, and 4.5 years during cognitive tasks.
- Parent-child interactions filmed and rated for supportiveness at 1.5 and 3 years.
- Child executive functions assessed via parent report at 4.5 years.
Main Results:
- No direct association found between hippocampal volume and cortisol trajectories.
- Smaller neonatal hippocampal volume predicted greater susceptibility to less structured parenting, linked to altered cortisol patterns and reduced executive functions.
- Lower cortisol output across childhood correlated with more positive parenting (sensitivity, nonhostility, nonintrusiveness) at 3 years and better executive function at 4.5 years.
Conclusions:
- Neonatal hippocampal volume may serve as a marker for susceptibility to parenting structure, influencing stress regulation in very preterm children.
- Supportive parenting demonstrates a beneficial effect on stress regulation and executive function development in this vulnerable group.
- Early life experiences and brain structure interact to shape long-term developmental trajectories in very preterm infants.
Background:
Children born very preterm (≤32 weeks gestational age) display altered neonatal brain maturation and physiological stress regulation that may be related to executive function difficulties. Supportive parent behaviors are related to better neurodevelopment, but children may vary in their susceptibility to such behaviors. We investigated whether supportive parenting during toddlerhood (1.5, 3 years) moderated the relationship between neonatal hippocampal volume, stress dysregulation across childhood, and executive functions.
Methods:
In a prospective longitudinal cohort study (N = 188, 100 male), infants born very preterm underwent magnetic resonance imaging at term-equivalent age. At 1.5, 3, and 4.5 years, saliva samples were collected during challenging cognitive tasks and assayed for cortisol; area under the curve with respect to ground (AUCg) measured total cortisol output at each age. Parent interaction was rated from films at 1.5 and 3 years, and parents reported on child executive functions at age 4.5 years.
Results:
Longitudinal modeling revealed no direct relationship between hippocampal volume and cortisol trajectories. Children with smaller neonatal hippocampal volume showed greater susceptibility to poorer parent structuring at 1.5 years, associated with altered AUCg trajectories across age, and displayed fewer executive functions in the face of optimal structuring. Lower AUCg across age was related to more positive parenting (sensitivity, nonhostility, nonintrusiveness) at 3 years and better child executive function at 4.5 years.
Conclusions:
In children born very preterm, smaller neonatal hippocampal volume may represent a neurophenotype of susceptibility to parent provisions of structure related to stress regulation across early childhood. Conversely, supportive parenting may benefit the development of stress regulation across early childhood and executive functions at preschool age.
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