Two-thirds of adolescents who received active perinatal care after extremely preterm birth had mild or no disabilities.

Abstract

Active perinatal care (APC) increases the survival of extremely preterm (EPT) infants, but may increase the rate of disabilities. We examined neurodevelopmental outcomes in adolescents aged 10-15 years who were born EPT and received APC in two Swedish tertiary care centres. Cognitive function was assessed using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, and neurosensory impairments were assessed by reviewing the case records and a standard parent health questionnaire. The outcomes were compared to term-born controls. We assessed 132 EPT adolescents and 103 controls. The rates of cerebral palsy, moderate to severe visual impairment and moderate to severe hearing impairment were 9%, 4% and 6%, respectively, for the EPT children and zero for the controls. Serious cognitive impairment was present in 31% of the EPT adolescents and 5% of the controls. Combining impairments across domains showed that 34% of EPT adolescents had moderate and severe disabilities compared with 5% of the controls. Impairments were more common at 23-24 weeks of gestational age (43%) than at 25 weeks (28.4%). Two-thirds (66%) of adolescents born EPT who received APC had mild or no disabilities. Our results are relevant for healthcare providers and clinicians counselling families.