What do we know about the long-term cognitive and behavioral outcomes of school-aged children who were born moderate to late preterm?

摘要

With improvements in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) care, major neurologic disabilities such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation, blindness, and deafness seem to have decreased [ - ]. However, the cognitive/behavioral outcomes of school-aged children who were born prematurely are worse than those of full-term children. A meta-analysis of school-aged children born prematurely showed that mean cognitive scores were significantly lower (weighted mean difference, 10.9; 95% confidence interval, 9.2–12.5) than those of full-term children [ ]. It is notable that intelligence quotient (IQ) scores show a gestational age-related gradient, especially in children born before 33 weeks [ ]. In addition, most studies show an increased risk of attention problems such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) [ , ]. Some studies included executive function and aca demic achievement in school-aged children who were born prematurely, showing their deficits which lags behind full term-born peers [ ].