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Ulmer-Yaniv A, Yirmiya K, Peleg I, Zagoory-Sharon O, Feldman R. Developmental Cascades Link Maternal-Newborn Skin-to-Skin Contact with Young Adults' Psychological Symptoms, Oxytocin, and Immunity; Charting Mechanisms of Developmental Continuity from Birth to Adulthood. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:847. [PMID: 37372132 DOI: 10.3390/biology12060847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Revised: 06/04/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Premature birth disrupts the continuity of maternal-newborn bodily contact, which underpins the development of physiological and behavioral support systems. Utilizing a unique cohort of mother-preterm dyads who received skin-to-skin contact (Kangaroo Care, KC) versus controls, and following them to adulthood, we examined how a touch-based neonatal intervention impacts three adult outcomes; anxiety/depressive symptoms, oxytocin, and secretory immunoglobulin A (s-IgA), a biomarker of the immune system. Consistent with dynamic systems' theory, we found that links from KC to adult outcomes were indirect, mediated by its effects on maternal mood, child attention and executive functions, and mother-child synchrony across development. These improvements shaped adult outcomes via three mechanisms; (a) "sensitive periods", where the infancy improvement directly links with an outcome, for instance, infant attention linked with higher oxytocin and lower s-IgA; (b) "step-by-step continuity", where the infancy improvement triggers iterative changes across development, gradually shaping an outcome; for instance, mother-infant synchrony was stable across development and predicted lower anxiety/depressive symptoms; and (c) "inclusive mutual-influences", describing cross-time associations between maternal, child, and dyadic factors; for instance, from maternal mood to child executive functions and back. Findings highlight the long-term impact of a birth intervention across development and provide valuable insights on the mechanisms of "developmental continuity", among the key topics in developmental research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adi Ulmer-Yaniv
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
| | - Karen Yirmiya
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
| | - Itai Peleg
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
| | - Orna Zagoory-Sharon
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience, Reichman University, Herzliya 4610101, Israel
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Firestein MR, Myers MM, Feder KJ, Ludwig RJ, Welch MG. Effects of Family Nurture Intervention in the NICU on Theory of Mind Abilities in Children Born Very Preterm: A Randomized Controlled Trial. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 9:children9020284. [PMID: 35205004 PMCID: PMC8870221 DOI: 10.3390/children9020284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2021] [Revised: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 02/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Preterm infants are at risk for socioemotional deficits, neurodevelopmental disorders, and potentially theory of mind (ToM) deficits. Preterm infants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) received Standard Care (SC) or Family Nurture Intervention (FNI). Children (N = 72; median age 61.8 ± 2.6 months; FNI: 35 (55%), SC:2 9 (45%)) completed a ToM task, of whom 64 (54% male; born to White (43.8%), Black (18.7%), and Hispanic (25.0%) mothers) contributed to this analysis. FNI and SC infants born extremely preterm to very preterm differed significantly: 78% (14 of 18) of FNI children passed vs. 30% (3 of 10) SC children (p = 0.01, effect size = 1.06). This large effect size suggests that FNI in the NICU may ameliorate deficits in social-cognitive skills of extreme to very preterm infants by school age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan R Firestein
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Michael M Myers
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | | | - Robert J Ludwig
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Martha G Welch
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY 10032, USA
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Abstract
Faces hold a substantial value for effective social interactions and sharing. Covering faces with masks, due to COVID-19 regulations, may lead to difficulties in using social signals, in particular, in individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions. Daily-life social participation of individuals who were born preterm is of immense importance for their quality of life. Here we examined face tuning in individuals (aged 12.79 ± 1.89 years) who were born preterm and exhibited signs of periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), a dominant form of brain injury in preterm birth survivors. For assessing the face sensitivity in this population, we implemented a recently developed experimental tool, a set of Face-n-Food images bordering on the style of Giuseppe Arcimboldo. The key benefit of these images is that single components do not trigger face processing. Although a coarse face schema is thought to be hardwired in the brain, former preterms exhibit substantial shortages in the face tuning not only compared with typically developing controls but also with individuals with autistic spectrum disorders. The lack of correlations between the face sensitivity and other cognitive abilities indicates that these deficits are domain-specific. This underscores impact of preterm birth sequelae for social functioning at large. Comparison of the findings with data in individuals with other neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric conditions provides novel insights into the origins of deficient face processing.
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van Beek PE, van der Horst IE, Wetzer J, van Baar AL, Vugs B, Andriessen P. Developmental Trajectories in Very Preterm Born Children Up to 8 Years: A Longitudinal Cohort Study. Front Pediatr 2021; 9:672214. [PMID: 34041210 PMCID: PMC8143520 DOI: 10.3389/fped.2021.672214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Aim: Long-term outcome data in preterm children is often limited to cross-sectional measurement of neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI) at the corrected age of 24-36 months. However, impairments may only become overt during childhood or resolve with time, and individual trajectories in outcome over time may vary. The primary aim of this study was to describe NDI in very preterm born children at three subsequent ages of 2, 5, and 8 years of age. As a secondary aim, a longitudinal analysis was performed on the individual longitudinal trajectories in NDI from 2 to 8 years of age. Methods: Single-center prospective cohort study including children born between 1990 and 2011 below 30 weeks' gestation and followed into 2019. The outcome measurement was NDI assessed at 2, 5, and 8 years of age. NDI is a composite score that includes cognitive, neurological, visual, and auditory functions, in which problems were categorized as none, mild, moderate, or severe. Cognitive function measured as total DQ/IQ score was assessed by standardized psychometric tests. Neurological, visual, and auditory functions were assessed by the neonatologist. Results: In total, 921 children were eligible for follow-up, of whom 726 (79%) children were assessed. No NDI was seen in 54, 54, and 62%, mild NDI was seen in 31, 36, and 30%, and moderate-to-severe NDI was seen in 15, 9.2, and 8.6% of the children at 2, 5, and 8 years, respectively. From 2 to 8 years, 63% of the children remained in the same NDI category, 20% of the children improved to a better NDI category, and 17% deteriorated toward a worse NDI category. No differences were found in baseline characteristics of infants that improved or deteriorated. Extreme prematurity, male gender and low parental education were associated with worse NDI status at all time points. Although we observed considerable individual variation over time in NDI status, the course of the trajectories in NDI were not associated with gestation, gender, and parental education. Conclusions: Continued follow-up until school life is essential in order to provide optimal and individually focused referrals and care when needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline E van Beek
- Department of Neonatology, Máxima Medical Center, Veldhoven, Netherlands
| | | | - Josse Wetzer
- Department of Psychology, Máxima Medical Center, Veldhoven, Netherlands
| | - Anneloes L van Baar
- Department of Child and Adolescent Studies, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Brigitte Vugs
- Department of Psychology, Máxima Medical Center, Veldhoven, Netherlands
| | - Peter Andriessen
- Department of Neonatology, Máxima Medical Center, Veldhoven, Netherlands.,Department of Applied Physics, School of Medical Physics and Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, Netherlands
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Eutrope J, Novo A, Barbe C, Loron G, Rolland AC, Caillies S. Impact of Executive Functions and Parental Anxiety on the Development of Social Cognition in Premature Children: A Cross-Sectional Case-Control Protocol. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:484571. [PMID: 34566706 PMCID: PMC8458709 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.484571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Recent research has identified neuropsychological disorders, specifically executive function disorders, in premature children. Executive functions support goal-oriented mental activity and play a role in the development of social cognition. This underlies the social and emotional behavior of individuals. Parental anxiety is also an important environmental factor that can influence the psycho-emotional development of children. Objectives: The present protocol aims to compare the development of social cognition in school-age children born prematurely to that of school-age children born full-term, and to determine the impact of executive (dys)function and parental anxiety on such development. Methods/Design: In this cross-sectional protocol, 28 prematurely born children aged 7-10 years ("preterm") and 28 full-term born children aged 7-10 years ("control") will be included. The "preterm" and "control" groups will be matched for sex and age. The neuropsychological evaluation will include that of non-verbal intellectual efficiency (Raven's colored progressive matrices), verbal level (WISC-IV subtests), and executive functions (NEPSY II subtests and the opposite worlds of TEA-CH). The evaluation of social cognition will be conducted via tests of the theory of cognitive and affective mind. Several dimensions of the level of parental anxiety will be collected through the Spielberg Trait Anxiety Inventory Form Y, Beck Depression Inventory, Social Support Questionnaire-6, Parental Stress Index and, specifically for mothers, the Modified Perinatal Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Questionnaire. Discussion: The results of this protocol will aid our understanding of the development of social cognition in premature children and to determine the factors that influence such development. This clinical research project, although following a fundamental approach, will have clinical implications because a more precise description of the development of social cognition in this school-age population will make it possible to better determine the cognitive targets of therapeutic actions and to search for predictive indices of the efficacy of practices. Trial Registration:https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03007095, identifier: NCT03007095.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julien Eutrope
- CHU Reims, Hôpital Robert Debré, Service de Psychothérapie de l'Enfant et de l'Adolescent, Reims, France.,Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne, C2S EA 6291, Reims, France
| | - Alexandre Novo
- CHU Reims, Hôpital Robert Debré, Service de Psychothérapie de l'Enfant et de l'Adolescent, Reims, France.,Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne, Faculté de Médecine, Reims, France.,Université de Paris, CRPMS ED 450, Paris, France
| | - Coralie Barbe
- CHU Reims, Hôpital Maison Blanche, Unité d'Aide Méthodologique à la Recherche Clinique, Reims, France
| | - Gauthier Loron
- CHU Reims, American Memorial Hospital, Service de Pédiatrie, Reims, France
| | - Anne-Catherine Rolland
- CHU Reims, Hôpital Robert Debré, Service de Psychothérapie de l'Enfant et de l'Adolescent, Reims, France.,Université de Reims Champagne Ardenne, Faculté de Médecine, Reims, France
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Reyes LM, Jaekel J, Heuser KM, Wolke D. Developmental cascades of social inhibition and friendships in preterm and full‐term children. INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/icd.2165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lucia M. Reyes
- Department of Child & Family StudiesUniversity of Tennessee Knoxville Knoxville Tennessee
| | - Julia Jaekel
- Department of Child & Family StudiesUniversity of Tennessee Knoxville Knoxville Tennessee
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of Warwick Coventry UK
| | | | - Dieter Wolke
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of Warwick Coventry UK
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