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. 2023 Apr;112(4):675-685.
doi: 10.1111/apa.16651. Epub 2023 Jan 12.

Perinatal risk factors for developmental coordination disorder in children born extremely preterm

Jenny Bolk  1   2   3 , Karin Källén  4 , Aijaz Farooqi  5 , Maria Hafström  6   7 , Vineta Fellman  8   9   10 , Ulrika Åden  11   12 , Fredrik Serenius  5   13
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Perinatal risk factors for developmental coordination disorder in children born extremely preterm

Jenny Bolk et al. Acta Paediatr. 2023 Apr.

Abstract

Aim: Children born extremely preterm frequently have developmental coordination disorder (DCD). We aimed to evaluate perinatal risk factors for DCD.

Methods: Swedish national cohort study including 226 children born before 27 gestational weeks without major neurodevelopmental disabilities at 6.5 years. Outcome was DCD, defined as ≤5th percentile on the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition. Perinatal risk factors were evaluated using multivariable logistic regression.

Results: DCD was present in 84/226 (37.2%) children. Of the risk factors known at 40 weeks gestation, independent and significant risk factors for DCD were: mother's age at delivery (odds ratio [OR] 1.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.07-2.80); pre-eclampsia (2.79, 1.14-6.80); mother born in a non-Nordic country (2.23, 1.00-4.99); gestational age per week increase (0.70, 0.50-0.99) and retinopathy of prematurity (2.48, 1.26-4.87). Of factors known at discharge, postnatal steroids exposure (2.24, 1.13-4.46) and mechanical ventilation (1.76, 1.06-2.09) were independent risk factors when added to the model in separate analyses.

Conclusion: The risk of DCD in children born extremely preterm was multifactorial and associated with gestational age largely mediated by ROP, maternal factors, pre-eclampsia, administration of postnatal steroids and mechanical ventilation. These risk factors are common among children born extremely preterm, contributing to their high risk of DCD.

Keywords: developmental coordination disorder; perinatal; preterm; risk factors.

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