Preterm Births Increase Risk of Cognitive Impairments, Especially Math Abilities

Preterm birth, or the birth of an infant prior to 37 weeks of pregnancy, affects 500,000 babies each year and contributed to 35% of infant deaths in 2009. Now, a new study has shown that preterm births affect a child's cognitive abilities.

In the UK, preterm births occur in one out of every 13 infants, compared to one in every eight infants in the U.S. Signs include contractions, sudden water breaking, or when a "show" occurs. Preterm births gravely affect a baby because important growth stages occur during the final weeks and months of pregnancy.

Co-authors Dieter Wolke from the University Warick and Julia Jaekel from Ruhr-University Bochum had their study published in the Journal of Pediatrics. The objective of their study was "to evaluate whether the risk for dyscalculia in preterm children increases the lower the gestational age (GA) and whether small-for-gestational age birth is associated with dyscalculia," as provided by the study's abstract.

A total of 922 children between the ages of seven and nine were observed by researchers at the University of Warwick in the UK and Ruhr-University Bochum in Germany. They found that children considered to be "very preterm," or born before 32 weeks of pregnancy, have a 39.4% chance of being impaired mathematically. A total of 14.9% of those born between 39-41 weeks were found to possess increased odds of developing impairment.

The researchers closely examined dyscalculia, which is a learning disorder associated with problems involving everyday arithmetic. This disorder is known as a considerable mathematical impairment, but it there was no correlation with its development and preterm birth.

Despite failing to unveiling the study's objective, the co-authors found that there is a significant increased risk for preterm babies to develop mathematical impairments on top of their already-developed general cognitive problems.

"Teachers should be aware of these children's problems and need to work on ways of math instruction that help preterm children deal with the high cognitive workload and integration of information required for mathematic tasks in school", said Proffor Wolke in this University of Warick press release.

To read more about the affects of preterm birth, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.