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Aim: We investigated the associations between motor performance and IQ at 5 years of age and school difficulties and grade point averages (GPAs) at 18 years of age. Additionally, the accuracy of preschool IQ in predicting school difficulties was examined. Methods: A nationwide follow‐up study of children born in 1994–1995 who were <28 weeks of gestation or had a birthweight <1000 g. The Danish personal identification number was used to merge data from a national cohort study with population‐based registries. Logistic regression analyses examined the associations between motor performance/IQ and school difficulties. Linear regression analyses and the area under the receiver operator curve (AUC) were used to examine the relationship between IQ and GPAs. Results: The study population comprised 248 children, 37% were classified with school difficulties. Motor performance and IQ were associated with school difficulties. The odds of having school difficulties increased as IQ decreased, and the same pattern was observed for GPAs. IQ predicted school difficulties, with an AUC of 0.80 (confidence interval: 0.74–0.86). Conclusion: Preschool motor performance and IQ were associated with school difficulties. Additionally, IQ was linked to GPAs. As a screening tool, the predictive ability of preschool IQ for academic difficulties was moderate/high in this cohort. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: There is a need for methods that can provide valid assessment tools in a follow‐up programme without great financial costs. This study assessed the accuracy of the 60‐month Ages and Stages Questionnaire as a screening tool to predict a low intelligence quotient score at 6 years in children born very preterm. Methods: Totally, 54 children participated in a six‐year follow‐up study, which included an intelligence quotient test at 6 years of age and a 60‐month Ages and Stages Questionnaire at four and a half or 5 years of age at respond. We used the receiver operating characteristic curve and evaluated the optimal cut‐off score to predict a low intelligence quotient score. Results: At four and a half years, the optimal cut‐off value for predicting a low intelligence quotient score was 242, with a sensitivity of 67% and a specificity of 59%. At 5 years, only one child had a low intelligence quotient score, and the analysis was not performed. Conclusion: Our results did not support the use of the 60‐month Ages and Stages Questionnaire as a valuable screening tool to predict a low intelligence quotient score in children born very preterm at 6 years of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study that examined the use of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire to predict low intelligence quotient (IQ) scores in children born very preterm. The study found that the questionnaire did not accurately predict IQ scores at age 6. The authors acknowledge the limitations of their study, including the small sample size, but emphasize the importance of following up with very preterm-born children at preschool age to assess cognitive impairment and difficulties. They recommend larger studies to explore the use of simple screening tools for assessing these children. The authors declare no conflicts of interest. [Extracted from the article]

To investigate the risk of developing psychiatric disorders in individuals born prematurely (born before 37 weeks of gestation). The study is a longitudinal register-based study including all live-born individuals in Denmark from 1974 to 1996. Poisson regression models including well-known confounders were used to investigate the rate ratio of psychiatric disorders at the age of 11-34 years in the individuals born prematurely. A total of 1 545 641 individuals were born from 1974 to 1996. Of these, 1 348 106 live-born individuals constituted the study cohort. Rate ratios of psychiatric disorders, in total, increased in proportion to the degree of prematurity. The rate ratio of major psychiatric disorder was increased in individuals born with a gestational age below 28 weeks compared to persons born with a gestational age of 39-45 weeks (RR = 1.88 (95% CI: 1.25-2.83)). Similarly, the rate ratios of minor psychiatric disorder (RR = 1.63 (95% CI: 1.29-2.06)) and psychotropic drugs purchased (RR = 1.35 (95% CI: 0.98-1.86)) were increased. The risk of minor as well as major psychiatric disorders during adolescence and young adulthood increases in proportion to the degree of prematurity. The relative risk, however, is small compared to the risks of cerebral palsy or low intelligence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cohort of extremely prematurely born children and matched term controls was assessed at 5 years of age. The parents completed a questionnaire on their behavioral and social development. The purpose was to illuminate whether the children's general intellectual ability and parental sensitivity were associated with behavioral and social development. The index children exhibited more hyperactive behavior and had poorer social skills than the controls. Lower Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) was associated with outward reacting and hyperactive behavior and poorer social skills. Sensitive parenting was associated with less outward reacting and less hyperactive behavior. When controlling for differences in FSIQ and parental sensitivity, the index children persisted to have an increased risk of exhibiting hyperactive behavior but not poorer social skills. The index children with normal intellectual development, however, did not exhibit more behavioral problems or poorer social skills than the control children did. Hoff, B., Hansen, B. M., Munck, H. & Mortensen, E. L. (2004). Behavioral and social development of children born extremely premature: 5-year follow-up. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 45, 285–292. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]