Attentional problems in children born very preterm or with extremely low birth weight at 7–9 years

Behavioral rating scales and tests of attention were used to study attentional problems in children born very preterm (≤27 weeks gestation) or with extremely low birth weight (ELBW; ≤1000 g). Psychological tests of attention (viz., Digits and Spatial Span Forward, Visual Attention from the NEPSY, Trail Making Test B, and Stroop Color and Word Test) were administered to 45 children born very preterm/ELBW and 49 full-term controls, aged 7–9 years of age. Behavioral ratings on an ADHD scale were provided by parents and teachers on inattentive and hyperactive–impulsive symptoms. Children born very preterm/ELBW were found to perform significantly more poorly on Spatial Span Forward, Visual Attention, and Trail Making B than controls. Group differences were also found on parents’ ratings on inattentive and total symptoms. Finally, measures of psychological tests of attention were found to be significant predictors of parents’ and teachers’ ratings of symptoms.