Environmental Influence on Cognitive Development in Very-Preterm or Very-Low-Birth-Weight Infants

Education level of parents was a dominant influence on intellectual development in school-age years in this population.

Biological and environmental factors influence cognitive development in premature infants during the first year of life. Less is known about intellectual capacities in older children born very preterm (VPT; ≤32 weeks) or with very low birth weight (VLBW; ≤1250 g).

Investigators performed a meta-analysis of 31 high-quality studies (1990 to 2014) that included multivariable predictive modeling of factors associated with poor neurodevelopment, evaluated using standardized research tools, in children born VPT or with VLBW.

Factors predictive of global cognitive impairment in children at age <5 years included male sex, nonwhite race/ethnicity, lower parental education level, and lower birth weight. The prognostic value of neonatal brain injury cou…

Reviewing Author

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics