Publication Date
11-1-2023
Journal
Journal of Perinatology
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Extremely preterm (EP) impairment rates are likely underestimated using the Bayley III norm-based thresholds scores and may be better assessed relative to concurrent healthy term reference (TR) infants born in the same hospital.
STUDY DESIGN: Blinded, certified examiners in the Neonatal Research Network (NRN) evaluated EP survivors and a sample of healthy TR infants recruited near the 2-year assessment age.
RESULTS: We assessed 1452 EP infants and 183 TR infants. TR-based thresholds showed higher overall EP impairment than Bayley norm-based thresholds (O.R. = 1.86; [95% CI 1.56-2.23], especially for severe impairment (36% vs. 24%; p ≤ 0.001). Difficulty recruiting TR patients at 2 years extended the study by 14 months and affected their demographics.
CONCLUSION: Impairment rates among EP infants appear to be substantially underestimated from Bayley III norms. These rates may be best assessed by comparison with healthy term infants followed with minimal attrition from birth in the same centers.
Keywords
Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Child Development, Databases, Factual, Infant, Extremely Premature, Paediatrics, Neurological manifestations
Comments
Clinical Trial: Term Reference (under the Generic Database Study): NCT00063063
PMID: 37542155