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Social-emotional development in very preterm infants during early infancy
Gray, Peter H. Edwards, Dawn M. Hughes, Ian P. Pritchard, Margo
Gray, Peter H.
Edwards, Dawn M.
Hughes, Ian P.
Pritchard, Margo
Abstract
[Extract] Mental health disorders among children and adolescents are of growing importance, with an estimated prevalence of 10–20% [1]. There are now indications that these problems are major contributors to the global burden of disability [2]. In a review related to preterm infants, Johnson et al. [3] indicated that there was a 3- to 4-fold increased risk for mental health disorders in middle childhood as compared to term infants. As it has been proposed that children may benefit from early intervention [4,5], it is crucial that they be identified at an early stage. Social-emotional difficulties during infancy are considered to be a predictor of later mental health problems [6]. There has been however, relatively little investigation into the social-emotional development of very preterm infants during the first years of life. Nevertheless it has been suggested that up to a quarter of very preterm infants exhibit social-emotional delays during infancy [[7], [8], [9]]. Furthermore, lower social competence at two years of age has been noted for preterm infants when comparisons have been made with term born peers using the Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment [10] and the Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment [11].
Keywords
Date
2018
Type
Journal article
Journal
Early Human Development
Book
Volume
121
Issue
Page Range
44-48
Article Number
ACU Department
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Open Access Status
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Controlled