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Cognitive and Socioemotional Development at 5 and 9 Years of Age of Children Born with Very Low Birth Weight and Extremely Low Birth Weight in the Czech Republic

Publication at Central Library of Charles University, First Faculty of Medicine |
2022

Abstract

Background: There is a high prevalence of cognitive and socioemotional dysfunction in very low birth weight (VLBW <1500 g) and extremely low birth weight (ELBW <1000 g) children. This study from the Czech Republic aimed to com-pare the cognitive and socioemotional development at 5 and 9 years of age of children born with VLBW/ELBW with children born with normal birth weight (NBW 32500 g).

Material/Methods: The clinical group consisted of 118 VLBW/ELBW children and the control group consisted of 101 children with NBW at ages 5 to 9 years. The research battery included selected subscales from the Intelligence and Development Scales (IDS), A Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment - second edition (NEPSY-II), and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF).

Data were analyzed using STATA IC v. 15 software and G*Power (descriptive statistic, analysis of variance (ANOVA), correlations, multivariate analysis of variance - MANOVA, post hoc power analysis). Results: We found a statistically significant difference in cognitive and socioemotional development between children with VLBW/ELBW and those with NBW.

The average intelligence quotient (IQ) of VLBW/ELBW children was 96.38, while that of NBW children was 12.98 points higher (P<0.001). NBW children achieved better results on all subtests of the IDS (P<0.001) as well as in affect recognition (P<0.001).

All results for both groups were with-in normal range. Parents of VLBW/ELBW children did not recognize impaired executive functioning (P=0.494).

Conclusions: This study has shown significant cognitive and socioemotional deficit in children born with VLBW and ELBW when evaluated at 5 and 9 years of age.