Motor abilities in adults born with very low birthweight: A study of two birth cohorts from Finland and Norway.

AIM: To compare overall, fine, and gross motor abilities in adults born preterm with very low birthweight (VLBW) and a control group of term-born individuals. METHOD: In a joint assessment of the Helsinki Study of Very Low Birth Weight Adults and NTNU Low Birth Weight in a Lifetime Perspective study, data were collected with harmonized methods for 118 adults born preterm (gestational age < 37 weeks) with VLBW (≤1500 g) and 147 control individuals. The primary outcome was overall motor abilities; secondary outcomes were fine and gross motor abilities. RESULTS: The Bruininks Motor Ability Test Short Form total score was 4.1 (95% confidence interval 2.7-6.0) points lower in adults born with VLBW than in the control group, adjusted for cohort, age, and sex. This was partly mediated by their shorter height. They also had lower scores for other fine and gross motor tests. Results were similar when participants with neurosensory impairment were excluded, and when we adjusted for additional covariates. INTERPRETATION: Adults born preterm with VLBW had poorer overall, fine, and gross motor abilities than adults born at term. This indicates that substantial difficulties in motor function among individuals born preterm with VLBW persist into mid-adulthood.

Body composition in adults born preterm with very low birth weight.

BACKGROUND: Studies on body composition in preterm very low birth weight (VLBW < 1500 g) survivors are inconsistent and trajectories later in life unknown. We assessed body composition and its change from young to mid-adulthood in VLBW adults. METHODS: We studied 137 VLBW adults and 158 term-born controls from two birth cohorts in Finland and Norway at mean age 36 years. Body composition was assessed by 8-polar bioelectrical impedance. We compared results with dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry measurements at 24 years. RESULTS: In mid-adulthood, VLBW women and men were shorter than controls. Fat percentage (mean difference in women 1.1%; 95% CI, -1.5% to 3.5%, men 0.8%; -2.0% to 3.6%) and BMI were similar. VLBW women had 2.9 (0.9 to 4.8) kg and VLBW men 5.3 (2.7 to 8.1) kg lower lean body mass than controls, mostly attributable to shorter height. Between young and mid-adulthood, both groups gained fat and lean body mass (p for interaction VLBW x age>0.3). CONCLUSION: Compared with term-born controls, VLBW adults had similar body fat percentage but lower lean body mass, largely explained by their shorter height. This could contribute to lower insulin sensitivity and muscular fitness previously found in VLBW survivors and predispose to functional limitations with increasing age. IMPACT: In mid-adulthood, individuals born preterm with very low birth weight had similar body fat percentage but lower lean body mass than those born at term. This was largely explained by their shorter height. First study to report longitudinal assessments of body size and composition from young to mid-adulthood in very low birth weight adults. Lower lean body mass in very low birth weight adults could contribute to lower insulin sensitivity and muscular fitness and lead to earlier functional limitations with increasing age.

Foveal thickness and its association with visual acuity in adults born preterm with very low birth weight: A two-country birth cohort study.

PURPOSE: To explore foveal and parafoveal thickness in adults born preterm with very low birth weight (VLBW) and its association with best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and gestational age (GA) compared to adults born at term. METHODS: In a joint study of the Helsinki Study of Very Low Birth Weight Adults (Finland) and the NTNU Low Birth Weight Life study (Norway), 106 VLBW and 143 term-born controls were examined with spectral-domain optical coherence tomography and BCVA at age 31-43 years. Thickness of retinal layers was segmented in the foveal and parafoveal areas of the macula. RESULTS: The total retinal thickness in the foveal area was thicker in VLBW adults compared with controls; mean (SD): 292.5 µm (28.2) and 272.4 µm (20.2); p < 0.001, and thinner in the parafoveal areas of the macula. These findings could be explained by a thicker inner retinal layer in the foveal area found in VLBW adults compared with controls (mean difference 20.4 µm; CI: 15.0 to 25.9), where a thicker fovea was associated with lower GA, but not BCVA. CONCLUSION: Adults born preterm with VLBW had a thicker retina in the foveal area than controls and this was associated with GA, but not with BCVA. These changes seem to be related to a thicker inner retinal layer in VLBW adults. The findings imply that signs of macular underdevelopment are still present in adulthood, but not necessarily related to reduced visual function.