Gestational Age and Cognitive Ability in Early Childhood: a Population‐based Cohort Study

Poulsen, Gry; Wolke, Dieter; Kurinczuk, Jennifer J; Boyle, Elaine M.; Field, David; Alfirević, Z̄arko; Quigley, Maria A.

doi:10.1111/ppe.12058

Cited by 77 publications

(119 citation statements)

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“…This association was not seen at 24 months, which is consistent with results from some studies 14,26 but differs from other studies. 27,28 At preschool and kindergarten timepoints, similar to previous studies of late preterm infants at preschool and early school age, 10,11 we found that late preterm infants demonstrate less optimal early reading skills in preschool and kindergarten and less optimal 5 All analyses adjusted for maternal age, maternal race or ethnicity, socioeconomic status at 9 mo, parenting, infant gender, birth weight, and receipt of early intervention services. Analyses at preschool and kindergarten also included age at assessment and month of school.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

“…7 -9 Recent studies have examined the possibility of a dose-response association between gestational age and early school performance by comparing early school outcomes of late preterm infants with outcomes of children born at early term (37-38 weeks) and term gestation (39-41 weeks). 10 -12 Compared with children born at early term and term gestation, children born in the late preterm period demonstrate poorer performance on tests of early school readiness, spatial abilities, and verbal reasoning in early childhood, 10 poorer educational achievement at age 5, 11 and poorer school performance at age 7. 12 Despite these findings, little is known about the pattern of development in late preterm infants in the period before school entry.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Developmental Outcomes of Late Preterm Infants From Infancy to Kindergarten

Shah

Kaciroti²,

Richards³

et al. 2016

Pediatrics

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To compare developmental outcomes of late preterm infants (34-36 weeks' gestation) with infants born at early term (37-38 weeks' gestation) and term (39-41 weeks' gestation), from infancy through kindergarten. METHODS:Sample included 1000 late preterm, 1800 early term, and 3200 term infants ascertained from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort. Direct assessments of development were performed at 9 and 24 months by using the Bayley Short FormResearch Edition T-scores and at preschool and kindergarten using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort reading and mathematics θ scores. Maternal and infant characteristics were obtained from birth certificate data and parent questionnaires. After controlling for covariates, we compared mean developmental outcomes between late preterm and full-term groups in serial cross-sectional analyses at each timepoint using multilinear regression, with pairwise comparisons testing for group differences by gestational age categories. RESULTS:With covariates controlled at all timepoints, at 9 months late preterm infants demonstrated less optimal developmental outcomes (T = 47.31) compared with infants born early term (T = 49.12) and term (T = 50.09) (P < .0001). This association was not seen at 24 months, (P = .66) but reemerged at preschool. Late preterm infants demonstrated less optimal scores in preschool reading (P = .0006), preschool mathematics (P = .0014), and kindergarten reading (P = .0007) compared with infants born at term gestation. CONCLUSIONS:Although late preterm infants demonstrate comparable developmental outcomes to full-term infants (early term and full-term gestation) at 24 months, they demonstrate less optimal reading outcomes at preschool and kindergarten timepoints. Ongoing developmental surveillance for late preterm infants is warranted into preschool and kindergarten.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Developmental Outcomes of Late Preterm Infants From Infancy to Kindergarten

Shah

Kaciroti²,

Richards³

et al. 2016

Pediatrics

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“…Improvements in medical care or in the educational system over the years may have resulted in better outcomes among early-term individuals. However, findings regarding early-term birth and learning abilities in more recent cohorts are mixed (MacKay, Smith, Dobbie, & Pell, 2010;Poulsen et al, 2013;Yang et al, 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Preterm birth is associated with low intelligence (Jaekel, Baumann, & Wolke, 2013;Kerr-Wilson, Mackay, Smith, & Pell, 2012) and learning difficulties in several domains, including reading and spelling (Poulsen et al, 2013;Schneider, Wolke, Schlagmuller, & Meyer, 2004). Problems with mathematics have been found to be especially common in preterm children (Simms et al, 2014) and are associated with global cognitive deficits (Jaekel & Wolke, 2014; Simms et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preterm Birth and Adult Wealth

et al. 2015

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Each year, 15 million babies worldwide are born preterm. Preterm birth is associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes across the life span. Recent registry-based studies suggest that preterm birth is associated with decreased wealth in adulthood, but the mediating mechanisms are unknown. This study investigated whether the relationship between preterm birth and low adult wealth is mediated by poor academic abilities and educational qualifications. Participants were members of two British population-based birth cohorts born in 1958 and 1970, respectively. Results showed that preterm birth was associated with decreased wealth at 42 years of age. This association was mediated by decreased intelligence, reading, and, in particular, mathematics attainment in middle childhood, as well as decreased educational qualifications in young adulthood. Findings were similar in both cohorts, which suggests that these mechanisms may be time invariant. Special educational support in childhood may prevent preterm children from becoming less wealthy as adults. Keywordspreterm birth, wealth, mathematics, reading, intelligence, adulthood outcomes Received 1/7/15; Revision accepted 6/24/15 Worldwide, 11% of infants are born preterm (< 37 weeks gestation), which amounts to around 15 million births per year (Blencowe et al., 2012;Goldenberg, Culhane, Iams, & Romero, 2008). Rates of preterm birth are increasing globally, rising from 7.2% to 8.6% between 1990 and 2010 in developed countries alone (Blencowe et al., 2012). Preterm birth is a syndrome resulting from multiple causes (Goldenberg et al., 2008) and is associated with widespread brain alterations (Volpe, 2009). Prematurity is associated with adverse developmental and psychological outcomes across the life span (Johnson & Wolke, 2013;Moster, Lie, & Markestad, 2008;Saigal, 2014).Recent registry-based studies have documented decreased wealth in adulthood following preterm birth (Heinonen et al., 2013;Lindstrom, Winbladh, Haglund, & Hjern, 2007;Moster et al., 2008). In a Scandinavian sample, adults born preterm had, on average, lower job-related incomes and were found to be more likely to receive social security benefits at the ages of 20 to 36 years than adults born at term (Moster et al., 2008). These negative outcomes do not apply only to high-risk groups, such as those born very preterm (< 32 weeks gestation); they have also been found for adults born moderately preterm (32-33 weeks gestation) and late preterm (34-36 weeks gestation; Heinonen et al., 2013;Lindstrom et al., 2007), who together comprise up to 84% of all preterm births (Shapiro-Mendoza & Lackritz, 2012). These registry-based studies have important strengths, including unbiased measures and the use of large, unselected samples. However, they do not provide information on potential mechanisms leading to decreased wealth in adulthood that could aid the development of intervention strategies.Mediators that may explain decreased wealth in preterm adults include poor abilities in several academic fields. P...

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“…22,26,27,[29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] The literature is not entirely consistent: some studies have found no differences in neurocognitive performance between those born late preterm and term. 30 4 We also excluded 30 participants with a history of stroke, 6 with Parkinson's disease, and 1 who discontinued the CERAD-NB (n = 37 [3.3%] …”

Section: What This Study Addsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Late Preterm Birth and Neurocognitive Performance in Late Adulthood: A Birth Cohort Study

et al. 2015

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OBJECTIVES: We studied if late preterm birth (34 weeks 0 days-36 weeks 6 days of gestation) is associated with performance on the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Neuropsychological Battery (CERAD-NB) in late adulthood and if maximum attained lifetime education moderated these associations.METHODS: Participants were 919 Finnish men and women born between 1934 and 1944, who participated in the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study. They underwent the CERAD-NB at a mean age of 68.1 years. Data regarding gestational age (late preterm versus term) were extracted from hospital birth records, and educational attainment data were gathered from Statistics Finland.RESULTS: After adjustment for major confounders, those born late preterm scored lower on word list recognition (mean difference: -0.33 SD; P = .03) than those born at term. Among those who had attained a basic or upper secondary education, late preterm birth was associated with lower scores on word list recognition, constructional praxis, constructional praxis recall, clock drawing, Mini-Mental State Examination, and memory total and CERAD total 2 compound scores (mean differences: .0.40 SD; P values ,.05), and had a 2.70 times higher risk of mild cognitive impairment (Mini-Mental State Examination score: ,26 points) (P = .02). Among those with tertiary levels of education, late preterm birth was not associated with CERAD-NB scores.CONCLUSIONS: Our findings offer new insight into the lifelong consequences of late preterm birth, and they add late preterm birth as a novel risk factor to the list of neurocognitive impairment in late adulthood. Our findings also suggest that attained lifetime education may mitigate aging-related neurocognitive impairment, especially among those born late preterm. WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:More than 70% of all preterm deliveries are late preterm (34-36 weeks of gestation). Existing evidence suggests that compared with those born at term, those born late preterm score lower on neurocognitive tests in childhood and young adulthood. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:The effect of late preterm birth on neurocognitive performance persists up to late adulthood, especially among those who have only a basic or upper secondary level of education. Late preterm birth is also associated with a risk of memory impairments.

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Gestational Age and Cognitive Ability in Early Childhood: a Population‐based Cohort Study

Abstract: Cognitive ability is related to the entire range of gestational age, including children born at 34-36 and 37-38 weeks gestation.

Cited by 77 publications

References 32 publications

Developmental Outcomes of Late Preterm Infants From Infancy to Kindergarten

Developmental Outcomes of Late Preterm Infants From Infancy to Kindergarten

Preterm Birth and Adult Wealth

Late Preterm Birth and Neurocognitive Performance in Late Adulthood: A Birth Cohort Study

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