premature/low birth weight and adhd | ADHD Information
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/461571_3
Attention and Executive Functioning
Premature, low birth weight children demonstrate poorer attention and
executive functioning skills in relation to full-term
children.[24,72-74] Research has shown that deficits in attention are
associated with problems in executive functioning.[74]
Both attentional processes and executive functioning are regulated
within the cerebral cortex, an area of the brain that is still
developing in the premature infant. It is posited that preterm infants'
early exposure to the nonuterine environment may have a negative impact
on the neurological processes occurring in the brain, apart from the
effects of specific adverse medical conditions. In particular, the
organization, differentiation, and selective pruning of specific
neurons may be disrupted, thus resulting in less organized, less
efficient information processing.[8]
Many studies have found higher rates of attentional problems in
premature, low birth weight children.[73,75] A recent meta-analysis
found that 10 of the 15 studies reviewed demonstrated a significantly
greater prevalence of attention problems in premature versus full-term
children.[24]
In a study by Sterqvist and Svenningsen,[76] 20% of 10-year-old very
low birth weight, preterm children (compared with 8% of full-term
children) were found to suffer from attention deficits. Similarly,
Botting et al[77] found that 23% of very low birth weight children (v 6% of full-term peers) exhibited attention deficit disorders.
It has been noted that premature, low birth weight children are more likely to have the type of attentional problems that are not associated with hyperactivity or conduct disorder, which are often seen in the general population.[78-80]
A study by Whitaker et al[81] found that parenchymal lesions and
enlarged ventricles in premature, low birth weight neonates are
significantly predictive of later attention deficit disorders. Children
prenatally exposed to drugs have also demonstrated problems with
attention as well as executive functioning.[70,82]
Attentional capacities are believed to be a fundamental component of
higher order processes such as executive functioning. Executive
functioning can be defined as the central processing, organization, and
integration of separate pieces of information.
It is posited that overall cognitive and learning deficits seen in
premature, low birth weight children may be the result of a central
deficit in simultaneous processing of multiple pieces of information
across one or more sensory modalities.[78,83]
As previously reported, Rose et al[64,84] found that preterm, low birth
weight infants demonstrate poorer unimodal and cross-modal processing
and integration of visual and tactile information, which is linked to
later problems with cognition and learning.
A study by Wall[74] found that 5- to 7-year-old children born preterm
performed significantly worse than full-term controls on executive
functioning tasks such as Visual Search, Verbal Fluency, and the Tower
of Hanoi; the lower performance of these preterm children was
associated with lower IQ scores as well as higher levels of attentional
problems—namely impulsivity and hyperactivity. It is likely that
deficits in executive functioning and attention are related to the many
learning disabilities that emerge in premature, low birth weight
children once they reach school.[78]
my daughter was delivered my an emergency c section when i went into heelp syndrome with severe pre-eclampsia. she was a 4 pounder and has adhd...was delivered at 36 weeks, but i had home nursing for a month prior/bedrest. stressful pregnancy for sure.
shelley
my son was trying to be a preemie at 4 months, but they gave me meds to prevent the preterm labor. Then he didn't want to come at all, he was 10 days late. 8 pounds 2 oz. 23 inches long. the meds cause adhd and it's also hereditary. So, he had two strikes against him. poor boy didn't have a chance. lol
my son was 11lbs 5, natural birth, he's 7 and it still hurts to think about it!!
My daughter was taken 3 weeks early due to me being a diabetic mom. It was a precaution and they did a test to ensure her lungs were fully developed first.
Sorry to bring back such an old thread but I'm wondering if anyone else here has a child who was premature and if so do you know if any natural remedies such as omega 3, magnesium etc can help?
My son is now 5.5 years old and was 1# 12oz preemie.
Thanks
Christine
That's really interesting. I hadn't read that. Not that that particularly applies to my daughter as she was a porker at 8 pounds 12 ounces (thankfully through a C section!). But she's exhibited hyperactivty since the day she could walk!!!
I am interested in the Omega 3's and other vitamins though, too. Our doctor's PNP suggested getting liquid vitamins called Miracle 1000, but do you think I can find them? And of course, she only works 2 days a week, so I haven't been able to get in touch with her today. Megan is not big on taking pills, so I was very interested in this tasteless liquid vitamin. She had a metabolic blood work up done about 3 weeks ago and she is borderline low normal in zinc (73 when "normal" is 70-150) and Vitamin B12 (361 when "normal" is 211 - 911). But her Folic Acid is sky high (at least to me!). Anything over 5.4 is good, well, hers is 20.1! Her calcium and magnesium (these are all the things they tested her for) are within mid-normal range.
Interesting indeed. I seem to think this has contributed to my son's issues. He was 5lbs 14oz at birth and according to the dr, 2 weeks late. There was a small tear in the placenta around the 4th month of my pregnancy. And the cord was wrapped around his neck causing his heartrate to drop dangerously during delivery, he was almost an emergency c-section.
both of my ADHD children were full term and quite good
sized...8 pounds 15 ounces and 8 pounds 11 ounces...all 4 of my
children were big...the smallest was 8 pounds 10 ounces...my largest
was 10 pounds 4 ounces...
all natural births...