Cognitive and academic outcomes of children born extremely preterm

Extremely preterm birth is associated with increased risk for a spectrum of neurodevelop-mental problems. This review describes the nature of cognitive and academic outcomes of extremely preterm survivors across childhood and adolescence. Evidence across meta-analyses and large prospective birth cohorts indicate that early developmental difficulties in children born extremely preterm do not resolve with age and are not improving over time despite advancements in neonatal care. While extremely preterm birth confers increased risk of widespread cognitive difficulties, considerable heterogeneity in outcomes is evident across individuals. There is a continued need for high-quality longitudinal studies to understand the developmental progression of cognitive and academic skills following extremely preterm birth, and greater focus on understanding contributing factors that may help to explain the individual variability in cognitive and academic outcomes of extremely preterm survivors. (C) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Extremely preterm birth is associated with increased risk for a spectrum of neurodevelopmental problems, with early developmental difficulties persisting and not improving over time despite advancements in neonatal care. While there is increased risk of cognitive difficulties, there is considerable heterogeneity in outcomes across individuals, highlighting the need for longitudinal studies to understand developmental progression and contributing factors to explain variability in cognitive and academic outcomes.