Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-cphqk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-01-11T01:29:11.209Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Intrauterine Growth and Neuropsychological Performance in Very Low Birth Weight Preschoolers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 February 2012

Sarah Raz ,
Angela K. DeBastos ,
Julie Bapp Newman  and
Daniel Batton
Sarah Raz*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Angela K. DeBastos
Affiliation:
Division of Pediatric Neuropsychology, Children's National Medical Center, Washington, District Columbia
Julie Bapp Newman
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan Department of Psychiatry, Neuropsychology program, Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
Daniel Batton
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Southern Illinois University Medical School, Springfield, Illinois
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Sarah Raz, Developmental Neuropsychology Laboratory, the Merrill-Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, 71 E. Ferry, Detroit, Michigan 48202. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In this study we examined the association between intrauterine growth, indexed either as a categorical variable or continuous dimension, and neuropsychological outcome, in a very low birth weight (VLBW) sample of 143 preschoolers. When the commonly used split at the 10th percentile rank was applied to classify intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), we found that the growth restricted group (n = 25) exhibited significantly poorer performance in the global motor domain, but not on any other neuropsychological measure. In contrast, when adequacy of intrauterine growth was indexed by standardized birth weight, a continuous dimension, this early risk factor explained a unique portion of the variance in global cognitive abilities and visuospatial skills, as well as in global, fine, and gross motor skills. These findings are consistent with recent magnetic resonance imaging data disclosing global neurodevelopmental changes in the brains of preterm infants with IUGR. When cases classified with IUGR (<10th percentile) were excluded, the relationship between adequacy of intrauterine growth and global cognitive abilities remained significant despite range restriction. Hence, an association between appropriateness of intrauterine growth and global intellectual outcome may be observed even within the population of VLBW preschoolers with adequate standardized birth weight. (JINS, 2012, 18, 200–211)

Keywords

Preterm birthIntrauterine growth retardationPreschool childrenIntelligence testsMotor skillsLanguage tests
Type
Research Articles
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 18 , Issue 2 , March 2012 , pp. 200 - 211
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Amato, K.D. (1992). Neurosonographic findings in premature infants and infants with intrauterine growth retardation with a birth weight below 1,500 grams. Klinische Padiatrie, 204, 362–367.Google Scholar
Amato, M., Konrad, D., Huppi, P., Donati, F. (1993). Impact of prematurity and intrauterine growth retardation on neonatal hemorrhagic and ischemic brain damage. European Neurology, 33, 299–303.Google Scholar
Ananth, C.V., Vintzileos, A.M. (2009). Distinguishing pathological from constitutional small for gestational age births in population-based studies. Early Human Development, 85, 653–658.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baneshi, M.R., Talei, A.R. (2011). Dichotomisation of continuous data: Review of methods, advantages, and disadvantages. Iran Journal of Cancer Prevention, 1, 26–32.Google Scholar
Batton, D.G., DeWitte, D.B., Pryce, C.J. (2011). One hundred consecutive infants born at 23 weeks and resuscitated. American Journal of Perinatology, 28, 299–304.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bergvall, N., Iliadou, A., Johansson, S., Tuvemo, T., Cnattingius, S. (2006). Risks for low intellectual performance related to being born small for gestational age are modified by gestational age. Pediatrics, 117, e460–e467.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bergvall, N., Iliadou, A., Tuvemo, T., Cnattingius, S. (2006). Birth characteristics and risk of low intellectual performance in early adulthood: Are the associations confounded by socioeconomic factors in adolescence or familial effects? Pediatrics, 117, 714–721.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dubois, J., Benders, M., Borradori-Tolsa, C., Cachia, A., Lazeyras, F., Ha-Vinh Leuchter, R., Huppi, P.S. (2008). Primary cortical folding in the human newborn: an early marker of later functional development. Brain, 131(Pt 8), 2028–2041.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Folio, M.R., Fewell, R.R. (2000). Peabody Developmental Motor Scales-Second Edition. Austin, TX: Pro-Ed, Inc.Google Scholar
Frisk, V., Amsel, R., Whyte, H.E. (2002). The importance of head growth patterns in predicting the cognitive abilities and literacy skills of small-for-sestational-age children. Developmental Neuropsychology, 22, 565–593.Google Scholar
Froen, J.F., Gardosi, J.O., Thurmann, A., Francis, A., Stray-Pedersen, B. (2004). Restricted fetal growth in sudden intrauterine unexplained death. Acta Obstetrica et Gynecologica Scandinavica, 83, 801–807.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Geva, R., Eshel, R., Leitner, Y., Fattal-Valevski, A., Harel, S. (2008). Verbal short-term memory span in children: long-term modality dependent effects of intrauterine growth restriction. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49, 1321–1330.Google Scholar
Guellec, I., Lapillonne, A., Renolleau, S., Charlaluk, M.-L., Roze, J.-C., Marret, S., … and the EPIPAGE Study Group. (2011). Neurologic outcomes at school age in very preterm infants born with severe or mild growth restriction. Pediatrics, 127, e883–e891.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gutbrod, T., Wolke, D., Soehne, B., Ohrt, B., Riegel, K. (2000). Effects of gestation and birth weight on the growth and development of very low birth weight small for gestational age infants: A matched group comparison. Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal and Neonatal Edition, 82, F208–F214.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hack, M., Friedman, H., Fanaroff, A.A. (1996). Outcomes of extremely low birth weight infants. Pediatrics, 98, 931–937.Google Scholar
Hjern, A., Thorngren-Jerneck, K. (2008). Perinatal complications and socio-economic differences in cerebral palsy in Sweden–A national cohort study. BMC Pediatrics, 8, 49.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hollingshhead, A.B. (1975). Four-Factor Index of Social Status. Unpublished manuscript, Yale University, New Haven, CT.Google Scholar
Hou, M., Sun, D.R., Shan, R.B., Wang, K., Yu, R., Zhao, J.H., Jiang, Y.P. (2010). Comorbidities in patients with cerebral palsy and their relationship with neurological subtypes and gross motor system classification levels. Zhonghua Er Ke Za Zhi, 48, 351–354.Google Scholar
Hu, H., Simonet, F., Luo, Z.C. (2010). Optimal birth weight percentile cut-offs in defining small- or large-for-gestational-age. Acta Paediatrica, 99, 550–555.Google Scholar
Hutton, J.L., Pharoah, P.O.D., Cooke, R.W.I., Stevenson, R. (1997). Differential effects of preterm birth and small gestational age on cognitive and motor development. Archives of Disease in Childhood. Fetal and Neonatal Edition, 76, F75–F81.Google Scholar
Kan, E., Roberts, G., Anderson, P.J., Doyle, L., the Victorian Infant Collaborative Study Group.(2008). The association of growth impairment with neurodevelopmental outcome at eight years of age in very preterm children. Early Human Development, 84, 409–416.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kang, S.-M., Waller, N.G. (2005). Moderated multiple regression, spurious interaction effects, & IRT. Applied Psychological Measurement, 29, 87–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaymak, O., Iskender, C.T., Ustunyurt, E., Yildiz, Y., Doganay, M., Danisman, N. (2011). Retrospective evaluation of perinatal outcome in women with mild gestational hyperglycemia. Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Research, 8, 986–991.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kok, J.H., den Ouden, A.L., Verloove-Vanhorick, S.P., Brand, R. (1998). Outcome of very preterm small for gestational age infants: the first nine years of life. British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 105, 162–168.Google Scholar
Kramer, M.S., Platt, R.W., Wen, S.W., Joseph, K.S., Allen, A., Abrahamowicz, M., Breart, G. (2001). A new and improved population-based Canadian reference for birth weight for gestational age. Pediatrics, 108, E35.Google Scholar
Kronenberg, M.E., Raz, S., Sander, C.J. (2006). Hypertension in pregnancy: The significance of suboptimal intrauterine growth. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 48, 200–206.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Latal-Hajnal, B., von Siebenthal, K., Kovari, H., Bucher, H.U., Largo, R.H. (2003). Postnatal growth in VLBW infants: Significant association with neurodevelopmental outcome. Journal of Pediatrics, 143, 163–170.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Larroque, B., Bertrais, S., Czernichow, P., Leger, J. (2001). School difficulties in 20–year olds who were born small for gestational age at term in a regional cohort study. Pediatrics, 101, 111–115.Google Scholar
Leitner, Y., Fattal-Valevski, A., Geva, R., Bassan, H., Posner, E., Kutai, M., Harel, S. (2000). Six-year follow-up of children with intrauterine growth retardation: Long-term, prospective study. Journal of Child Neurology, 15, 781–786.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leitner, Y., Fattal-Valevski, A., Geva, R., Eshel, R., Toledano-Alhadef, H., Rotstein, M., Harel, S. (2007). Neurodevelopmental outcome of children with intrauterine growth retardation: A longitudinal, 10-year prospective study. Journal of Child Neurology, 22, 580–587.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ley, D., Tideman, E., Laurin, J., Bjerre, I., Marsal, K. (1996). Abnormal fetal aortic velocity waveform and intellectual function at 7 years of age. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology, 8, 160–165.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lundgren, E.M., Cnattingius, S., Jonsson, B., Tuvmo, T. (2003). Intellectual and psychological performance in males born small for gestational age. Hormone Research, 59, 139–141.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mandruzzato, G., Antsaklis, A., Botet, F., Chervenak, F.A., Figueras, F., Grunebaum, A., Stanojevic, M. (2008). Intrauterine restriction (IUGR). Journal of Perinatal Medicine, 36, 277–281.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
MacCallum, R.C., Zhang, S., Preacher, K.J., Rucker, D.D. (2002). On the practice of dichotomization of quantitative variables. Psychological Methods, 7, 19–40.Google Scholar
Maring, J.R., Elbaum, L. (2002). Concurrent validity of the Early Intervention Developmental Profi le and the Peabody Developmental Motor Scale-2. Pediatric Physical Therapy, 19, 116–120.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maxwell, S.E., Delaney, H.D. (1993). Bivariate median splits and spurious statistical significance. Quantitative methods in psychology. Psychological Bulletin, 113, 181–190.Google Scholar
Monset-Couchard, M., de Bethmann, O., Relier, J.-P. (2004). Long term outcome of small versus appropriate size for gestational age co-twins/triplets. Archives of Disease in Childhood. Fetal and Neonatal Edition, 89, F310–F314.Google Scholar
Morsing, E., Asard, M., Ley, D., Stjernqvist, K., Karel, Marsal. (2011). Cognitive function after intrauterine growth restriction and very preterm birth. Pediatrics, 127, e874–e882.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Naggara, O., Raymond, J., Guilbert, F., Roy, D., Weill, A., Altman, D.G. (2011). Analysis by categorizing or dichotomizing continuous variables is inadvisable: An example from the natural history of unruptured aneurysms. AJNR American Journal of Neuroradiology, 32, 437–440.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Newman, J.B., Debastos, A.G., Batton, D., Raz, S. (2011). Neonatal respiratory dysfunction and neuropsychological performance at the preschool age: A study of very preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia. Neuropsychology, 25, 665–678.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
O'Keeffe, M.J., O'Callaghan, M., Williams, G.M., Najman, J.M., Bor, W. (2003). Learning, cognitive, and attentional problems in adolescents born small for gestational age. Pediatrics, 112, 301–307.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Paz, I., Labor, A., Gale, R., Harlap, S., Stevenson, D.K., Seidman, D.S. (2001). Term infants with fetal growth restriction are not at increased risk for low intelligence scores at age 17 years. Journal of Pediatrics, 138(87), 87–91.Google Scholar
Pedhazur, E.J. (1982). Continuous and categorical independent variables: Aptitude-treatment interaction: comparisons of regression equations. In E.J. Pedhazur, (Ed.), Multiple regression in behavioral research (pp. 436–573). New York, NY: CBS College Publishing.Google Scholar
Procianoy, R.S., Koch, M.S., Silveira, R.C. (2009). Neurodevelopmental outcome of appropriate and small for gestational age very low birth weight infants. Journal of Child Neurology, 24, 788–794.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Raz, S., Debastos, A.K., Newman, J.B., Batton, D. (2010). Extreme prematurity and neuropsychological outcome in the preschool years. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 16, 169–179.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Raz, S., Lauterbach, M.D., Hopkins, T.L., Porter, C.L., Riggs, W.W., Sander, C.J. (1995). Severity of perinatal cerebral injury and developmental outcome: A dose response relationship. Neuropsychology, 9, 91–101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rizzo, G., Arduini, D. (2009). Intrauterine growth restriction: Diagnosis and management. A review. Minerva Ginecologica, 61, 411–420.Google ScholarPubMed
Silver, R. (2007). Fetal death. Obststrics and Gynecology, 109, 153–167.Google Scholar
Sommerfelt, K., Andersson, H.W., Sonnander, K., Ahlsten, G., Ellersten, B., Markestad, T., Bakketeig, L. (2000). Cognitive development of term small for gestational age children at five years of age. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 83, 25–30.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sung, I.K., Vohr, B., Oh, W. (1993). Growth and neurodevelopmental outcome of very low birth weight infants with intrauterine growth retardation: comparison with control subjects matched by birth weight and gestational age. Journal of Pediatrics, 123, 618–624.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tideman, E., Marsal, K., Ley, D. (2007). Cognitive function in young adults following intrauterine growth restriction with abnormal fetal aortic blood flow. Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 29, 614–618.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thompson, D.K., Warfield, S.K., Carlin, J.B., Pavlovic, M., Wang, H.X., Bear, M., Inder, T.E. (2007). Perinatal risk factors altering regional brain structure in the preterm infant. Brain, 130, 667–677.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tolsa, C.B., Zinine, S., Warfield, S.K., Freschi, M., Sancho Rossignol, A., Lazeyras, F., Huppi, P.S. (2004). Early alteration of structural and functional brain development in premature infants born with intrauterine growth restriction. Pediatric Research, 56, 132–138.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Truwit, C.L., Barkovich, A.J., Koch, T.K., Ferriero, D.M. (1992). Cerebral palsy, MR findings in 40 patients. AJNR American Journal of Neuroradiology, 13, 67–78.Google ScholarPubMed
Valcamonico, A., Accorsi, P., Battaglia, S., Soregaroli, M., Beretta, D., Frusca, T. (2004). Absent or reverse end-diastolic flow in the umbilical artery: intellectual development at school age. European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, 114, 23–28.Google Scholar
Wechsler, D. (1989). Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Wechsler, D. (1997). Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Third Edition. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar
Weisglas-Kuperus, N., Hille, E.T., Duivenvoorden, H.J., Finken, M.J., Wit, J.M., van Buuren, S., Verloove-Vanhorick, S.P. (2009). Intelligence of very preterm or very low birth weight infants in young adulthood. Archives of Disease Child. Fetal and Neonatal Edition, 94, F196–F200.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Yang, S., Bergvall, N., Cnattingius, S., Kramer, M.S. (2010). Gestational age differences in health and development among young Swedish men born at term. International Journal of Epidemiology, 39, 1240–1249.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zimmerman, I.L., Steiner, V.G., Pond, R.E. (1992). Preschool Language Scale-Third Edition. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.Google Scholar