No abstract

Of the variables examined, environmental factors had a greater detrimental effect on child development than biological factors in this population. Interventions that enhance social capital and alleviate poverty are advocated.

Objective To estimate the incidence of epilepsy in children with Zika‐related microcephaly in the first 24 months of life; to characterize the associated clinical and electrographic findings; and to summarize the treatment responses. Methods We followed a cohort of children, born during the 2015‐2016 Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic in Brazil, with congenital microcephaly and evidence of congenital ZIKV infection on neuroimaging and/or laboratory testing. Neurological assessments were performed at ≤3, 6, 12, 15, 18, 21, and 24 months of life. Serial electroencephalograms were performed over the first 24 months. Results We evaluated 91 children, of whom 48 were female. In this study sample, the cumulative incidence of epilepsy was 71.4% in the first 24 months, and the main type of seizure was infantile spasms (83.1%). The highest incidence of seizures occurred between 3 and 9 months of age, and the risk remained high until 15 months of age. The incidence of infantile spasms peaked between 4 and 7 months and was followed by an increased incidence of focal epilepsy cases after 12 months of age. Neuroimaging results were available for all children, and 100% were abnormal. Cortical abnormalities were identified in 78.4% of the 74 children evaluated by computed tomography and 100% of the 53 children evaluated by magnetic resonance imaging. Overall, only 46.1% of the 65 children with epilepsy responded to treatment. The most commonly used medication was sodium valproate with or without benzodiazepines, levetiracetam, phenobarbital, and vigabatrin. Significance Zika‐related microcephaly was associated with high risk of early epilepsy. Seizures typically began after the third month of life, usually as infantile spasms, with atypical electroencephalographic abnormalities. The seizure control rate was low. The onset of seizures in the second year was less frequent and, when it occurred, presented as focal epilepsy.

The aim of this prospective study was to investigate the association between breast feeding and mental and motor development at age 12 months, controlling for comprehensive measures of the child's socio-economic, maternal and environmental background, and nutritional status. A cohort of 205 infants born during May-August 2001 in a poor area in the interior of the State of Pernambuco was enrolled, of whom 191 were tested at age 12 months with the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II, and in whom breast-feeding status was measured at days 1, 10, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 270 and 360. After adjusting for potential confounders, full breast feeding (i.e. exclusive or predominant) at 1 month was associated with a small but significant benefit in mental development (+3.0 points, P = 0.02) compared with partial or no breast feeding. No additional advantage in mental development was found with longer durations of full breast feeding. Full breast feeding at 1 month was associated with improved behaviour for two of 10 ratings tested: initiative with tasks (P = 0.003) and attention (P = 0.02). No association between breast feeding and motor development was found.

RESUMO -Este estudo teve como objetivo comparar o desenvolvimento aos 24 meses de 152 crianças nascidas a termo, com baixo peso (< 2500g) e peso adequado (3000 a 3499g), pareadas numa proporção de 1:1 por sexo e idade. O desenvolvimento mental e motor foram avaliados pela escala de Bayley. Estudaram-se ainda algumas variáveis ambientais, como as condições sócio-econômicas e demográficas e a estimulação ambiental. As crianças do grupo de baixo peso ao nascer apresentaram, para os índices mental e motor, média significantemente mais baixa do que a do grupo de peso adequado (p<0,001) com diferença de 9,1 e 10,2 pontos, respectivamente. A análise de regressão linear múltipla evidenciou que as condições sócio-econômicas e de estimulação ambiental explicaram 11% e 12% da variação do índice de desenvolvimento mental e 12% e 9% do desenvolvimento motor, respectivamente. Juntas elas explicaram 23% e 21% da variação desses índices. O baixo peso ao nascer influenciou apenas 3% da variação do índice mental e 5% do motor.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: baixo peso ao nascer, retardo de crescimento intra-uterino, desenvolvimento mental, desenvolvimeto motor, estimulação ambiental. Mental and motor development at 24 months of full-term low birthweight infantsABSTRACT -The objective of this study was to compare the development at 24 months of 152 full-term infants, born with low (<2500g) and appropriate birth weight (3000 to 3499g), paired in a proportion of 1:1 by sex and age. Mental and motor development were assessed through the Bayley scale. A variety of sociodemographic and environmental stimulation conditions were also assessed. The infants born with low weight had on average significantly lower mental and motor indexes than those born with appropriate weight (p<0.001), with a difference of 9.1 and 10.2 points, respectively. The multiple linear regression analysis showed that socioeconomic conditions and environmental stimulation explained 11% and 12% of the variation of mental index, and 12% and 9% of motor development, respectively. All together, they explained 23% and 21% of the variation of these indexes. Low birth weight influenced only 3% of the variation of mental index and 5% of motor index. KEY WORDS: low birth weight, intra-uterine growth retardation, mental development, motor development, environmental stimulation. Apesar de ainda não haver consenso na literatura, a maioria dos autores aceita o BPN em RN a termo como importante fator determinante do desenvolvimento, principalmente cognitivo e comportamental [6][7][8][9] . A maior polêmica entre os autores diz respeito ao modo de atuação do RCIU sobre o sistema nervoso central e aos outros fatores que interferem neste processo, como o nível sócio-econômico e a estimulação ambiental [10][11][12] .

The aim of the study was to compare the development of children with and without a programme of psychosocial stimulation in 'control' and 'intervention' sites in a poorly resourced area of northeast Brazil. The sample (n = 156, born 1998) was from a larger cohort. The cohort was tested at 12 months (baseline) with the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. All children in the intervention site with a mental development index (MDI) and/or psychomotor development index (PDI) < or = 100 were enrolled. Each time such a child was enrolled, the next child tested in that site of the same sex and with an index of 101 to 115 was also enrolled, and the next two children matched for sex and scores of < or = 100 and 101 to 115 in the control sites were recruited in parallel. The intervention comprised 14 contacts between 13 and 17 months of age. All children were tested again at age 18 months. The intervention and control groups were similar at baseline for a range of socioeconomic, demographic, environmental, and biological variables, and their MDI and PDI were also similar. At 18 months, the mean differences between the intervention and control groups were + 9.4 points for MDI and + 8.2 points for PDI (p < 0.001 in each case). For children with an initial score of < or = 100, the mean difference between the intervened and control groups was + 11.2 points for MDI (p < 0.001), and + 10.8 points for PDI (p = 0.001). The intervention was thus associated with significant improvements in cognitive and motor development.

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: The immaturity of preterm infants' organ systems may lead to difficulties in adapting to different environmental stimuli. The aim was to compare the psychomotor development of preterm infants (with corrected age) and term infants aged 6 to 12 months and to investigate associated factors. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional analytical study conducted at Hospital das Clínicas, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. METHODS:The sample consisted of 135 infants (45 preterm and 90 full-term) aged 6 to 12 months. Neuropsychomotor development was assessed using the Bayley III cognitive, language and motor subscales. Biological, socioeconomic and demographic data were gathered from medical records and through interviews with mothers. RESULTS: The mean cognitive, language and motor indices were within the range of normality for the sample as a whole. No significant difference in the development of infants born preterm and full-term was observed, except for expressive communication, in which preterm infants presented a lower index. Motor development was influenced by biological factors, and the poorest performances were observed in male infants; birth weight birth weight < 1500 g; Apgar score at five minutes ≤ 7; weight-, length-and head circumference-for-age < -1 Z-score; and exclusively breastfeeding for ≤ two months. CONCLUSIONS: Prematurity did not influence the psychomotor development of infants in this study population. Motor development was the most affected domain in the sample as a whole, especially due to biological factors. Investigations on child neuropsychomotor development should try to identify many determinant factors because of its multifactorial nature. RESUMO CONTEXTO E OBJETIVO:A imaturidade dos sistemas orgânicos das crianças nascidas prematuras pode levar a dificuldades de adaptação a diferentes estímulos do ambiente. O objetivo foi comparar o desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor de lactentes nascidos pré-termo (com idade corrigida) e no termo com idade entre 6 e 12 meses e investigar seus fatores associados. TIPO DE ESTUDO E LOCAL: Estudo transversal analítico realizado no Hospital das Clínicas, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco. MÉTODOS: A amostra foi constituída de 135 crianças (45 pré-termo e 90 no termo) com idade entre 6 a 12 meses. O desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor foi avaliado pelas subescalas cognitiva, linguagem e motora da Bayley III. Dados biológicos, socioeconômicos e demográficos foram coletados de prontuários médicos e por entrevistas com as mães. RESULTADOS: A média dos índices cognitivo, de linguagem e motor estava dentro da faixa de normalidade para a amostra como um todo. Não foi observada diferença significativa entre o desenvolvimento de crianças nascidas pré-termo e no termo, com exceção para a comunicação expressiva, na qual os prematuros apresentaram menor índice. O desenvolvimento motor foi influenciado por fatores biológicos, e os piores desempenhos foram observados em crianças do sexo masculino, com peso ao nascer < 1500 g; índice de Apgar aos cinco m...

It was concluded that LBW led to lower body measurements, whereas rapid postnatal weight gain determined higher BMI and WC among school age children.