Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013 Sep;132(3):e630-6.
doi: 10.1542/peds.2012-3588. Epub 2013 Aug 26.

ADHD and learning disabilities in former late preterm infants: a population-based birth cohort

Malinda N Harris  1 , Robert G Voigt, William J Barbaresi, Gretchen A Voge, Jill M Killian, Amy L Weaver, Christopher E Colby, William A Carey, Slavica K Katusic
Affiliations

ADHD and learning disabilities in former late preterm infants: a population-based birth cohort

Malinda N Harris et al. Pediatrics. 2013 Sep.

Abstract

Background and objective: Previous studies suggest that former late preterm infants are at increased risk for learning and behavioral problems compared with term infants. These studies have primarily used referred clinical samples of children followed only until early school age. Our objective was to determine the cumulative incidence of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disabilities (LD) in former late preterm versus term infants in a population-based birth cohort.

Methods: Subjects included all children born 1976 to 1982 in Rochester, MN who remained in the community after 5 years. This study focused on the comparison of subjects in 2 subgroups, late preterm (34 to <37 weeks) and term (37 to <42 weeks). School and medical records were available to identify individuals who met research criteria for ADHD and LD in reading, written language, and math. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the cumulative incidence of each condition by 19 years of age. Cox models were fit to evaluate the association between gestational age group and condition, after adjusting for maternal education and perinatal complications.

Results: We found no statistically significant differences in the cumulative incidence of ADHD or LD between the late preterm (N = 256) versus term (N = 4419) groups: ADHD (cumulative incidence by age 19 years, 7.7% vs 7.2%; P = .84); reading LD (14.2% vs 13.1%; P = .57); written language LD (13.5% vs 15.7%; P = .36), and math LD (16.1% vs 15.5%; P = .89).

Conclusions: These data from a population-based birth cohort indicate that former late preterm infants have similar rates of LD and ADHD as term infants.

Keywords: ADHD; late preterm; learning disability; mathematics disorder; neurodevelopmental outcome; prematurity; reading disorder; written language disorder.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Cumulative incidence of ADHD and LD in late preterm and term infants.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Kramer MS, Demissie K, Yang H, Platt RW, Sauvé R, Liston R, Fetal and Infant Health Study Group of the Canadian Perinatal Surveillance System . The contribution of mild and moderate preterm birth to infant mortality. JAMA. 2000;284(7):843–849 - PubMed
    1. Shapiro-Mendoza CK, Tomashek KM, Kotelchuck M, Barfield W, Weiss J, Evans S. Risk factors for neonatal morbidity and mortality among “healthy,” late preterm newborns. Semin Perinatol. 2006;30(2):54–60 - PubMed
    1. Tomashek KM, Shapiro-Mendoza CK, Weiss J, et al. . Early discharge among late preterm and term newborns and risk of neonatal morbidity. Semin Perinatol. 2006;30(2):61–68 - PubMed
    1. Moster D, Lie RT, Markestad T. Long-term medical and social consequences of preterm birth. N Engl J Med. 2008;359(3):262–273 - PubMed
    1. Lindström K, Lindblad F, Hjern A. Preterm birth and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in schoolchildren. Pediatrics. 2011;127(5):858–865 - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms