Early Intervention in Families with Preterm Infants: A Review of Findings from a Randomized Controlled Trial Following Children Up to 9 Years of Age

Abstract

The Tromsø Intervention Study on Preterms (TISP) randomized 146 preterm born children (<2000 g) either to the Mother-Infant Transaction Program-Modified (MITP-M, n = 72) or to a preterm control group (n = 74). In addition, 75 full-term babies were followed up until 9 years of age. TISP was conducted at the University Hospital Northern Norway (UNN) and only infants who did not have congenital anomalies and families where the mothers’ native language was Norwegian were included. The study investigates the effect of MITP-M on cognitive and social development including behavioral problems, quality of life and stress in the family. The results have so far been published in various journals. The aim of this article is to give a comprehensive overall presentation of the main findings and discuss implications for clinical practice and further research. Parents in the intervention group were superior in “reading” their infants’ temperament, and at 3, 5 and 7 years of age the intervention group scored significantly higher on well-known tests of cognitive outcome. At 9 years of age, the intervention group had fewer attentional problems, better school achievements and a better quality of life. From the first year onwards, mothers and fathers in the intervention group reported lower levels of stress than parents of in the preterm control group.

A systematic synthesis of qualitative studies on parents’ experiences of participating in early intervention programs with their infant born preterm

“…Our findings suggest that parents handling the infant while implementing the intervention, is what enhanced development of parental awareness and embodied sensitivity in perceiving the infant's cues. Consequently, as highlighted in previous research (Nordhov et al, 2010;Ulvund, 2022), the infant's ability to regulate her state and behavior can increase when facing a sensitive and attentive parent, which may foster her sensorimotor development.…”

“…Apparently, appropriately learning by doing as part of early intervention foster parental meaning, and thereby becomes motivational for the parents to adhere to the intervention. Embodied learning during face-to-face-interaction may nurture transformation of both parents and children, giving them an opportunity to be directly involved in a coordinated and synchronized manner, which is a central feature for creation of meaning and positive developmental environments ( Fuchs and De Jaegher, 2009 ; Ulvund, 2022 ).…”