Early Human Development

BACKGROUND: Infants of diabetic mothers (IDMs) develop interventricular septal hypertrophy (ISH) (> 6 mm) [1]. The proportion of IDMs developing ISH varies from country to country. Maternal HbA1c and cord blood Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels have been found useful to predict ISH. METHODS: This was a case-control study of term neonates of diabetic mothers (cases) and of non-diabetic mothers (controls) to evaluate echocardiographic (ECHO) differences among cases and controls and to find the correlation of interventricular septal thickness (IVS) thickness with maternal HbA1C and cord blood IGF-1 levels...

BACKGROUND: Prolonged continuation of augmented internal cerebral vein (ICV) pulsation may be related to the development of premature intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). However, the characteristics of ICV flow patterns in premature infants are unclear. AIM: To investigate the changes over time in ICV pulsation in premature infants at risk of IVH. STUDY DESIGN: A 5-year retrospective observational study of a single-center trial. SUBJECTS: In total, 112 very-low-birth-weight infants with gestational age of ≤32 weeks...

BACKGROUND: Clinical Swallowing Examination (CSE) and Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES) are relevant diagnostic methods in pediatric dysphagia. Satisfactory and comprehensive healthcare is still not part of the standard diagnostic process. AIMS: The purpose of this article is to evaluate the safety, feasibility, and diagnostic value of CSE and FEES in children 0-24 months of age. STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective cross-sectional study which was conducted at the pediatric clinic of the University Hospital Düsseldorf, Germany, between 2013 and 2021...

INTRODUCTION: Other than for agreement that own mother's milk is the optimum feed, nutritional practice for very preterm babies varies widely. As part of the development of a randomised controlled trial to address preterm nutrition uncertainties, and with the help of the European Foundation for the Care of Newborn Infants (EFCNI), we sought the views of parents across Europe. METHODS: We held two roundtable discussions about the proposed trial, inviting the participation of parents and preterm adults through EFCNI...

BACKGROUND: Extremely preterm (EPT) infants (≤28 weeks) remain at risk for poor outcomes. Small baby protocols (SBPs) may improve outcomes, but optimal strategies are unknown. METHODS: This study evaluated whether EPT infants managed using an SBP would have better outcomes compared to a historical control (HC) group. The study compared a HC group of EPT infants 23 0/7 weeks to 28 0/7 weeks GA (2006-2007), to a similar SBP group (2007-2008)...

Little is known about the direction, ordering, and uniqueness of longitudinal associations between behavior problems and cognitive ability, from toddlerhood to middle childhood. A developmental cascade model was tested in the present study to examine the transactional processes in 103 Chinese children at the ages of 1, 2, 7, and 9 years. Behavior problems were assessed using the maternal reported Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment at the ages of 1, 2 and parental reported Children Behavior Checklist at the ages of 7, 9...

BACKGROUND: Feeding mother's own milk (MOM) is associated with reduced morbidity of very low birth weight (VLBW) infants (<1500 g), but not all mothers are able to provide pumped breast milk or breastfeed until discharge. AIMS: To investigate the duration of MOM feeding and identify risk factors for cessation. STUDY DESIGN: Single-center retrospective cohort study. SUBJECTS: 307 VLBW infants born 2012 and 2019 surviving beyond 7 days of life...

Use of machine learning (ML) in the early detection of developmental delay is possible through the analysis of infant motor skills, though the large number of potential indicators limits the speed at which the system can be trained. Body joint obstructions, the inability to infer aspects of movement such as muscle tone and volition, and the complexities of the home environment - confound machine learning's ability to distinguish between some motor items. To train the system efficiently requires using an excerpted list of validated items, a salient set, which uses only those motor items that are the 'easiest' to see and identify, while being the most highly correlated to a low/qualifying score...

OBJECTIVE: A large, randomized cluster cross-over trial (N = 1730) comparing intact umbilical cord milking (UCM) to early cord clamping (ECC) in non-vigorous near-term/term newborns demonstrated a reduction in cardiorespiratory interventions at birth and less moderate to severe hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy. We evaluated changes in cerebral tissue oxygenation (StO2 ), pulse oximetry (SpO2 ), pulse rate and fraction of inspired oxygen (FiO2 ) during the first 10 min of life in a subset of infants enrolled in the parent trial...

BACKGROUND: Hereditary angioedema (HAE) caused by a deficiency or dysfunction of the plasma protease C1-inhibitor is a rare autosomal-dominant disorder. We explored a possible correlation between the ratio of the second and fourth finger lengths (2D:4D) and the frequency of HEA attacks, and whether the ratio might predict laryngeal attack. METHOD: We evaluated 35 HEA patients aged 19 to 66 years; 3 were subsequently excluded. The 2D:4D ratio was calculated by dividing the length of the second finger by that of the fourth finger of both hands...

BACKGROUND: High-grade intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) in very preterm infants is a known risk factor for adverse neurodevelopmental outcome. Prognosis is less clear for low-grade (grades I/II) IVH however, with conflicting study results in recent years. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of low-grade IVH on neurodevelopmental outcome at 2 years corrected age in preterm infants born below 32 weeks gestation at the University hospital of Zurich between 2009 and 2014...

OBJECTIVES: Fetal motor assessment (FMA) in addition to structural anomaly scan enhances prenatal detection of arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC). In the Amsterdam UMC, sonographers are trained to perform FMA. We examined the effect of motor assessment training by comparing sonographers with (SMA) and without this training (S) on their qualitative motor assessment in fetuses with normal (FNM) and abnormal motility (FAM) and their visual processing by eye-tracking. METHODS: The study was performed from 2019 to 2020...

BACKGROUND: There is little published evidence regarding associations between feeding and development in preterm infants which could help identify infants most needing follow-up services. AIMS: To determine if preterm infant feeding and development were predictable throughout the first year of life and identify associations with maternal factors, neonatal factors, and socioeconomic measures. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective single-site study of the feeding and development of extremely and very preterm infants at three time points throughout the first year of life...

AIMS: To describe the General Movements (GMs) of hospitalized newborns to verify if their global and detailed GMA are related and if their GMs are associated with clinical features. METHODS: Cross-sectional study. Thirty-eight preterm and full-term newborns, who were hospitalized in the neonatal intermediate care unit of a reference hospital, were included. Prechtl's General Movement Assessment (GMA), including the General Movement Optimality Score (GMOS) list, was used as an assessment tool...

BACKGROUND: Infants show other movements and posture patterns during the fidgety movement period, including movement toward midline (MTM). Few studies have quantified MTM occurring during the fidgety movement period. AIMS: This study aimed to examine the relationship between fidgety movements (FMs) and MTM frequency and occurrence rate per minute, from two video data sets (video attached to Prechtl video manual and accuracy data from Japan). STUDY DESIGN: Observational study...

BACKGROUND: Families experience psychological distress when their preterm infant is in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. A tailored educational intervention may be beneficial for their psychological well-being. Unfortunately, existing websites have moderate to low information quality and there is no educational website for French-speaking parents. AIM: To measure the acceptability and feasibility of a digital educational intervention designed to improve the psychological well-being of parents with a preterm infant, as well as the acceptability and feasibility of the study methods used...

Preterm birth has been linked with increased incidence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Despite the remarkable difference in the clinical backgrounds between ASD children born preterm and term, cross-sectional studies have found no striking difference in their autistic traits. To highlight autistic traits related with preterm birth, children born very preterm (prospective birth cohort, n = 50) and term (case cohort, n = 16), who were diagnosed as "Autism" by the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), 2nd edition, were compared using the calibrated severity scores of ADOS-2 and T-scores of the Social Responsiveness Scale, 2nd edition...

BACKGROUND: Serial clinical observation of asymptomatic newborns at risk of early-onset sepsis is an alternative option for which there is limited scientific evidence. AIMS: To evaluate the rate of protocol compliance, the impact on blood tests, percentage of hospitalizations and subsequent procedures, and course of diagnosed early-onset sepsis cases of a protocol based on serial clinical observation. METHODS: Retrospective observational study comparing an 18-month period under this protocol against a previous protocol based on laboratory tests...

BACKGROUND: Omega-3 fatty acids, especially docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are found in different cell membranes, but more concentrated in the brain, playing an important role in child's behavior and development. AIMS: To evaluate the effect of antenatal omega-3 supplementation on child development and behavior during the first six months of life. STUDY DESIGN: Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. SUBJECTS: Low-risk pregnant women with gestational age between 22 and 24 weeks were randomized in placebo (olive oil; n = 30) or omega-3 (fish oil; 1440 mg/day of DHA; n = 30) groups and supplemented until childbirth...

BACKGROUND: Digit ratio 2D:4D is used to follow children's development process and examine behaviours and abilities. AIM: The aim of this study is to determine the correlation between the 2D:4D digit ratios of 60-72 month-old children and their attention gathering skills, as well as whether the 2D:4D digit ratio and attention gathering skills of children differ based on independent variables. METHOD: The sample of the study, designed in the correlational survey model, consisted of a total of 112 children aged 60-72 months who were attending preschool education in Malatya province in Turkey...