What does fetal movement predict about behavior during the first two years of life?

DiPietro, Janet A.; Bornstein, Marc H.; Costigan, Kathleen A.; Pressman, Eva; Hahn, Chun Shin; Painter, Kathleen M.; Smith, Barbara A.; Yi, Linda J.

doi:10.1002/dev.10025

Cited by 90 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 59 publications

(79 reference statements)

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“…13 In general, more active fetuses were more difficult, unpredictable, inadaptable and active infants. 1 The IBQ provides an efficient means for evaluating a wide range of temperament variables because it is answered by parents who have a unique opportunity to observe their infants in a variety of situations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Twins’ temperament: early prenatal sonographic assessment and postnatal correlation

et al. 2009

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Objective: To study inter-twin differences in activity during early pregnancy and to examine their relationship to subsequent infant twins' temperament.Study Design: Measures of fetal motor activity (frequency, duration and number of movements) were collected from 26 twin pairs during ultrasound nuchal translucency scan at late first trimester and early second trimester (11 to 14 weeks gestation). In twenty-two patients, the twins were dizygotic (dichorionic); of them, 13 twin pairs were of different sexes, five were both females and four were both males. Of the four monozygotic twin pregnancies, two were dichorionic and two were monochorionic, three were both females.The more active fetus in each pair was noted according to the position and/or sex without reporting to parents. Reported maternal perception of the more active twin was documented at the mid-trimester anatomical scan.Maternally reported postnatal temperament data of the infants were collected at 3 and 6 months, using Rothbarts' Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ).Results: After birth, maternal reports on infants' temperament and the more active twin in each pair were in good correlation with prenatal inter-twin differences in activity. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves shows a better performance of ultrasound compared with maternal perception in prediction of the more active twin. Conclusions:The features of fetal neurobehavioral activity provide the basis for individual differences in twins' activity in infancy. Differences in activity in early pregnancy even before the emergence of fetal behavioral patterns were followed by temperamental differences postnatally. Keywords: twins; temperament; ultrasound; fetal movements; activity Introduction Fetal motor activity seems to predict temperament attributes related to regulatory behaviors in early childhood. 1 Using fourdimensional (4D) ultrasonography for the assessment of fetal behavior, a continuity from fetal to neonatal behavior was shown, 2 especially in terms of isolated eye blinking movements, mouth and eyelid opening, yawning, tongue expulsion, smiling, scowling and hand movements directed to other parts of the face.Physiological markers of individual differences in infant temperament are identifiable in the fetal period, and are possibly shaped by the prenatal environment. 3 Twins' gestations provide an opportunity to study the behavioral differences between pairs. Temperament variations were studied from the neonatal period to childhood. [4][5][6][7] Twin and adoption studies suggest that individual differences in infant and child temperament are genetically influenced. 8 Developmental aspects of behavioral organization were investigated in fetuses during the second and third trimester. Fetal behavioral states were defined according to the pattern and sequence of fetal motor activities throughout this period. [9][10][11] However, behavioral state variables before 36 weeks of gestation are not synchronized.Our objective was to study inter-twin differences in activity during e...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1 Using fourdimensional (4D) ultrasonography for the assessment of fetal behavior, a continuity from fetal to neonatal behavior was shown, 2 especially in terms of isolated eye blinking movements, mouth and eyelid opening, yawning, tongue expulsion, smiling, scowling and hand movements directed to other parts of the face.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Twins’ temperament: early prenatal sonographic assessment and postnatal correlation

et al. 2009

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“…However, implicit in the definition of temperament is the assumption that we should be able to identify individual differences in at least some domains of temperament in newborns (Rothbart, Derryberry, & Posner, 1994) and perhaps even prenatally (DiPietro et al, 2002;DiPietro, Hodgson, Costigan, & Johnson, 1996). While identifying stable individual behavioral characteristics prenatally or in newborns is an enterprise fraught with methodological perils, researchers have been able to classify a number of neonatal behavioral patterns in terms of known temperament dimensions, including negative emotionality, soothability and alertness (Matheny, Riese, & Wilson, 1985;St.…”

Section: Early Appearingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperament theory and the study of cognition–emotion interactions across development

Henderson

Wachs

2007

Developmental Review

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In this paper we review current definitions and measurement approaches used to assess individual differences in children's temperament. We review the neural bases of temperamental reactivity and self-regulation and propose that these constructs provide a framework for examining individual differences and developmental change in emotion-cognition interactions across development. Studies are reviewed in which some well-documented contextual effects on the expression of temperament can be interpreted in terms of the influence of biological and non-biological factors on CNS functioning. We conclude with ideas regarding future directions for the study of individual differences and developmental change in cognition-emotion interactions as they are shaped throughout development. Ó 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Keywords: Temperament; Reactivity; Self-regulation; Approach/withdrawal; Effortful control; CNS; fMRI; EEG/ERP There is a burgeoning literature on the neural correlates of developmental change and individual differences in numerous aspects of cognition and emotion. These rapid advances reflect a growing recognition of the utility of cross-disciplinary approaches for studying development, as well as the availability of new methodologies that provide developmental psychologists with the opportunity to directly assess the neural correlates of behavior. Although theory and research related to cognitive and emotional development have tended to proceed in parallel, new measurement approaches and collaborative efforts serve as a reminder of the importance of considering the simultaneous and interdependent 0273-2297/$ -see front matter Ó

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“…The obstetric literature also supports the fidgety fetus hypothesis, claiming that fetal motor activity is an important factor in predicting neonatal motor activity (20,21). DiPietro et al (20) discovered that fetal motor activity shows evidence of stability before birth and predicts aspects of temperament associated with regulatory control in early childhood.…”

Section: Research Design Andmentioning

confidence: 87%

The Fidgety Fetus Hypothesis: Fetal activity is an additional variable in determining birth weight of offspring of women with diabetes

Zisser

Jovanovič²,

Thorsell³

et al. 2006

Diabetes Care

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OBJECTIVE -To determine whether some offspring of women with diabetes are intrinsically more active than others in utero and whether those who are active are able to normalize their birth weight despite maternal hyperglycemia.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS -We conducted a three-phase study to view the relationship between fetal movements and subsequent birth weight in women with diabetes. Phase I was designed to assess maternal perception of fetal movements in a population of 10 women with diabetes. To improve our fetal monitoring techniques, in phase II we analyzed fetal movements using the Card Guard home fetal monitoring device (CG 900P) in a population of 13 women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). To apply our observations of fetal movements to a larger population, during phase III we conducted a retrospective analysis of fetal monitoring strips (HP 8041A) from 46 women with GDM to examine the relationship between fetal heart rate (FHR) accelerations and percentile birth weight, corrected for gestational age.RESULTS -Phase I confirmed that there is little variability in fetal movements (i.e., fetal kicks did not significantly deviate from one another on a day-to-day basis). In phase II, the fetal monitoring strips illustrated that the active fetuses (defined as Ն4 FHR accelerations in a 20-min period) were always active, and the inactive fetuses were always inactive. The mean birth weight percentile, corrected for gestational age, in the active group was 37 vs. 63% in the inactive group (P ϭ 0.05). In phase III, the fetal monitoring strips showed an inverse correlation between the mean number of FHR accelerations and the birth weight of the fetus, corrected for gestational age. The mean birth weight percentile in the active group was 37 vs. 62% in the inactive group (P ϭ 0.0017).CONCLUSIONS -The fetus appears to play a role in determining its own destiny. Increased fetal activity may minimize the impact of hyperglycemia on subsequent birth weight. The inactive fetus appears to be at a higher risk for glucose-mediated macrosomia. Diabetes Care 29:63-67, 2006M aternal glucose concentration plays a major role in the birth weight of infants born to women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). deVeciana et al. (1) reported that women with GDM who only monitor preprandial glucose have a 42% risk of neonatal macrosomia, whereas those who monitor both preprandial and 1-h postprandial glucose decrease their risk of neonatal macrosomia to near normal. Macrosomia, defined as birth weight Ͼ90th percentile for gestational age, ethnicity, and sex, is associated with an increased risk of birth trauma, including shoulder dystocia, death, and cesarean deliveries (2). Literature (3) also reports macrosomia in offspring of women with GDM, despite documentation of maternal normoglycemia. Using continuous glucose sensors in women with GDM has shown that continuous monitoring detects postprandial glucose elevations not detected by intermittent fingerstick blood glucose determinations (4). Perhaps the previous notion "macr...

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What does fetal movement predict about behavior during the first two years of life?

Cited by 90 publications

References 59 publications

Twins’ temperament: early prenatal sonographic assessment and postnatal correlation

Twins’ temperament: early prenatal sonographic assessment and postnatal correlation

Temperament theory and the study of cognition–emotion interactions across development

The Fidgety Fetus Hypothesis: Fetal activity is an additional variable in determining birth weight of offspring of women with diabetes

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