Neurocognitive outcomes in moderately preterm born adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Early preterm (EP) born children are at risk of neurocognitive impairments persisting into adulthood. Less is known about moderately to late (MLP) preterm born children, especially after early childhood. The aim of this study was to assess neurocognitive functioning of MLP adolescents regarding intelligence, executive and attentional functioning, compared with EP and full-term (FT) adolescents. METHODS: This study was part of the Longitudinal Preterm Outcome Project (LOLLIPOP), a large community-based observational cohort study. In total 294 children (81 EP, 130 MLP, and 83 FT) were tested at age 14 to 16 years, regarding intelligence, speed of processing, attention, and executive functions. We used the Dutch version of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition-Dutch Version (WISC-III-NL), the Test of Everyday Attention for Children, and the Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome for Children. We assessed differences between preterm-born groups with the FT group as a reference. RESULTS: Compared to the FT group, MLP adolescents scored significantly lower on two subtasks of the WISC-III-NL, i.e. Similarities and Symbol Search. EP adolescents performed significantly lower on all neuropsychological tests than their FT peers, except for the subtask Vocabulary. The MLP adolescents scored in between FT and EP adolescents on all tasks, except for three WISC-III-NL subtasks. CONCLUSIONS: Neurocognitive outcomes of MLP adolescents fell mostly in between outcomes of their EP and FT peers. MLPs generally performed on a low-average to average level, and appeared susceptible to a variety of moderate neurodevelopmental problems at adolescent age, which deserves attention in clinical practice.

Time to full enteral feeding after necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm-born children is related to neurodevelopment at 2-3 years of age.

BACKGROUND: Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is associated with poorer neurodevelopment. It is, however, unclear which factors besides surgery affect neurodevelopment in preterm-born children surviving NEC. AIMS: We determined whether time to full enteral feeding (FEFt) and post-NEC complications after NEC were associated with neurodevelopment. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective observational cohort study. SUBJECTS: Two to three year old preterm-born children who survived NEC (Bells stage ≥ 2). We categorized children in two groups, one group shorter and equal and one group longer than the group's median FEFt. Post-NEC complications included recurrent NEC and/or post-NEC stricture. OUTCOME MEASURES: Bayley Scales of Infants and Toddler Development III (Bayley-III) and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Associations between Bayley-III and CBCL scores with FEFt and Post-NEC complications were determined using linear regression analyses, adjusted for severity of illness and potential confounders. RESULTS: We included 44 children, median gestational age of 27.9 [IQR: 26.7-29.3] weeks, birth weight 1148 [IQR: 810-1461] grams. Median FEFt after NEC was 20 [IQR: 16-30] days. Median follow-up age was 25.7 [IQR: 24.8-33.5] months. FEFt > 20 days was associated with lower cognitive and lower motor composite scores of the Bayley-III (B: -8.6, 95% CI -16.7 to -0.4, and B: -9.0, 95% CI, -16.7 to -1.4). FEFt was not associated with CBCL scores. Post-NEC complications (n = 11) were not associated with Bayley-III scores nor with CBCL scores. CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged FEFt after NEC in preterm-born children surviving NEC is associated with lower cognitive and lower motor composite scores at the age of 2-3 years. These results show the importance of limiting the duration of the nil per mouth regimen if and when possible.

Reduced emotional empathy in adults with subclinical ADHD: evidence from the empathy and systemizing quotient.

Studies in children with ADHD suggest impairments in social cognitive functions, whereas studies in adults with ADHD are scarce and inconclusive. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between ADHD traits and self-reported social cognitive style in a sample of adults from the general population. For this purpose, a community sample of 685 adults filled out online self-report questionnaires about ADHD symptoms (ADHD Rating Scale, ARS), social cognitive functioning and friendships. The Empathy Quotient (EQ) with the subscales Cognitive Empathy (CE), Emotional Empathy (EE) and Social Skills (SS), and the Systemizing Quotient (SQ) were included for measuring social cognitive style and the Friendship Questionnaire (FQ) for the quality of friendships. Participants who met the DSM-5 criteria on the ARS ('subclinical ADHD'; n = 56) were compared regarding their social cognitive functioning scores with a control group (n = 56) that was matched for age, sex and student status. With small effect sizes, the subclinical ADHD group showed reduced EE scores on the EQ and a more male social cognitive profile. This result was not influenced by sex or ADHD subtype. This study points to a relationship between traits of ADHD and the emotional aspect of empathy, whereas more complex aspects of empathy were unrelated. These findings should be corroborated in clinical patients with ADHD, employing neuropsychological tests rather than self-report questionnaires.

The Empathy and Systemizing Quotient: The Psychometric Properties of the Dutch Version and a Review of the Cross-Cultural Stability.

The 'Empathy Quotient' (EQ) and 'Systemizing Quotient' (SQ) are used worldwide to measure people's empathizing and systemizing cognitive styles. This study investigates the psychometric properties of the Dutch EQ and SQ in healthy participants (n = 685), and high functioning males with autism spectrum disorder (n = 42). Factor analysis provided support for three subscales of the abridged 28-item EQ: Cognitive Empathy, Emotional Empathy and Social Skills. Overall, the Dutch EQ and SQ appeared reliable and valid tools to assess empathizing and systemizing cognitive style in healthy adults and high functioning adults with autism. The literature showed good cross-cultural stability of the SQ and EQ in Western countries, but in Asian countries EQ is less stable and less sensitive to sex differences.