PP10.2 – 2803: Is early detection of attention problems in preterm children possible? The value of neuropsychological assessment at preschool age

Abstract

Background Advances in neonatal intensive care have improved the survival rate of preterm babies over the last decades. However, despite the increased survival rate of these babies, the risk for cognitive and behavioral problems at school age has increased too. These problems are often attributable to specific attentional deficits. The early detection of attentional problems is therefore a challenging but important endeavor for clinicians. Objective The investigation of attentional functioning and all its subcomponents in preterms at preschool age. Methods Preterm (N=56) and full-term children (N=56) between 5;5 and 6;11 years (average 5;7), matched for age and gender, were assessed for the following attentional components: alertness, sustained attention, processing speed, orienting, perception, focused attention, go/nogo, distractibility, divided attention and flexibility. Each construct was assessed through subtests of the following neuropsychological batteries: KITAP/TAP and HAWIK-IV. Further factors such as parental ratings and descriptive item-based evaluation of the child's behavior during the neuropsychological assessment were also considered. Results Preterms show poor attentional performance in sustained attention, focused attention and distractibility, as well as a reduction of processing speed in the visual search task, divided attention and flexibility. Decrease of volitional attention compared to automatic attention was also identified. No problems were detected in alertness and inhibition (go/nogo). In addition, a higher rate of test-aborts, decreased motivation, and poor parental ratings were detected among the preterm population. Conclusion The results highlight the difference of attentional functioning between preterm and full-term children, pointing out the importance of new neuropsychological techniques for the detection of specific attentive disorders.