The Need for Special Education Among ELBW and SGA Preterm Children: A Cohort Study

Abstract

Background: Preterm infants with pre- or postnatal growth restriction may have an additional risk of adverse neurodevelopmental outcome. Whereas reduced cognitive ability and behavioral problems have consistently been associated with prematurity, a more comprehensive evaluation is necessary to identify those preterm infants who are at increased risk for difficulties in school performance. This study evaluated the association between extremely low birth weight (ELBW) and the need for special education and determined if there is an additional risk for the need for special education among small for gestational age (SGA) children.Methods: This is a single-center cohort study including singleton children born below 30 weeks' gestation between 1990 and 2011 and followed into 2019. ELBW + was defined as a birth weight below 1,000 g, which was compared to ELBW–. Within all ELBW+ children, SGA+ was defined as a birth weight <10th percentile according to Fenton, which was compared to SGA–. The dichotomous outcome measurement was the need for special education at 8 years of age or not, reflecting if the children required a special educational setting designed to accommodate educational, behavioral, and/or medical needs.Results: In total, 609 children were eligible for follow-up, of whom 390 (64%) children were assessed at 8 years. Of these, 56 (14%) children needed special education, most often determined by cognitive deficiency (43%), behavioral problems (29%), or both (16%). Among the 191 ELBW+ children, 35 (18%) attended special education, compared to 21 (11%) among ELBW– children (p-value 0.041). A decreasing risk for the need for special education was found from 25% in ELBW+/SGA+ children to 16% in ELBW+/SGA– children and 11% in ELBW–/SGA– children (p-value 0.025). Multivariable logistic regression showed an odds ratio of 2.88 (95% CI 1.20–6.78) for ELBW+/SGA+ children vs. ELBW–/SGA– children for the need for special education.Conclusions: This study showed that ELBW children are at increased risk for the need for special education compared to non-ELBW children. In addition, children that are both ELBW and SGA do have the highest risk for the need for special education. Classifying children as ELBW and SGA can be useful in follow-up for identifying preterm children with an additional risk for adverse long-term outcome.

Opportunities and Challenges of Prognostic Models for Extremely Preterm Infants

“…As stated previously, NDI is often used as an outcome parameter of long-term follow-up in EPIs and may serve as a suitable outcome parameter for prognostic models. As data on social functioning and mental health are often not available, an alternative option might be to use proxies in a model [18], such as the need for special education or intensive daily support [66]. Thus, choosing the right outcome parameters in a model will involve a combination of finding consensus in relevant outcome parameters among all stakeholders and the availability of reliable data.…”

The early educational environment at five years of age in a European cohort of children born very preterm: challenges and opportunities for research

“…Studies have documented that children born VPT are at an increased risk of poorer academic attainment [ 19 – 22 ], that may persist throughout their schooling [ 23 ]. Due to the nature and severity of their neurodevelopmental delays, these children are more likely to have special educational needs [ 21 , 22 , 24 ], requiring educational support and assistance at school age [ 20 , 21 , 24 – 26 ], such as learning support, and speech and motor therapies [ 25 , 27 ]. While medical research in the field of preterm birth remains paramount, there are calls for more attention to environmental factors that might promote these children’s longer term development and notably in education and schooling [ 28 ].…”