Temperamental and psychomotor predictors of ADHD symptoms in children born after a threatened preterm labour: a 6-year follow-up study

Autores de IIS La Fe

• Pablo Navalón Rodríguez

  Autor

• Farah Ghosn Yassine

  Autor

• Belén Almansa Tomás

  Autor

• Alba Moreno Giménez

  Autor

• Laura Campos Berga

  Autor

• Rosa Sahuquillo Leal

  Autor

• Vicente Jose Diago Almela

  Autor

• Máximo Vento Torres

  Autor

• 

  Ana Cristina García Blanco

  Autor

Participantes ajenos a IIS La Fe

• Ferrín M

Grupos

• Investigación en Salud Mental

• Perinatología

Abstract

Children born after threatened preterm labour (TPL), regardless of whether it ends in preterm birth, may represent an undescribed ``ADHD cluster''. The aim of this cohort study is to identify early temperament and psychomotor manifestations and risk factors of TPL children who present ADHD symptoms. One hundred and seventeen mother-child pairs were followed from TPL diagnosis until the child's 6 years of life. TPL children were divided according to the prematurity status into three groups: full-term TPL (n = 26), late-preterm TPL (n = 53), and very-preterm TPL (n = 38). A non-TPL group (n = 50) served as control. Temperament and psychomotor development at age 6 months and ADHD symptoms at age 6 years were assessed. Perinatal and psychosocial factors were also recorded. All TPL groups showed higher severity of ADHD symptoms compared with non-TPL children (difference in means + 4.19 for the full-term group, + 3.64 for the late-preterm group, and + 4.99 for the very-preterm group, all ps < 0.021). Concretely, very-preterm and late-preterm TPL children showed higher restless/impulsive behaviours, whereas full-term TPL children showed higher emotional lability behaviours. Higher surgency/extraversion and delayed fine motor skills at age 6 months predicted ADHD symptoms at 6 years in TPL children. Male sex, maternal state anxiety symptoms at TPL diagnosis, low parental education, and past maternal experience of traumatic events predicted higher ADHD symptoms in TPL children. Therefore, TPL children may have a higher risk for developing ADHD symptoms, presenting a phenotype that depends on the prematurity status. Moreover, the specific combination of early manifestations and risk factors suggests that TPL children may conform an undescribed group at-risk of ADHD symptoms.

© 2022. The Author(s).

Keywords

• ADHD; Neurodevelopmental disorders; Psychomotor development; Trauma; Pregnancy