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Neuropsychological Functioning in Preterm-Born Twins and Singletons at Preschool Age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 October 2016

Sarah Raz ,
Jamie C. Piercy ,
Andrew M. Heitzer ,
Brittany N. Peters ,
Julie Bapp Newman ,
Angela K. DeBastos ,
Noa Ofen ,
Beau Batton  and
Daniel G. Batton
Sarah Raz*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Jamie C. Piercy
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Andrew M. Heitzer
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Brittany N. Peters
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Julie Bapp Newman
Affiliation:
Division of Pediatric Neuropsychology, Children’s National Medical Center, Washington, District of Columbia
Angela K. DeBastos
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Noa Ofen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan The Institute of Gerontology, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
Beau Batton
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, Illinois
Daniel G. Batton
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Springfield, Illinois
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Sarah Raz, Developmental Neuropsychology Laboratory, the Merrill-Palmer Skillman Institute, Wayne State University, 71 E. Ferry, Detroit, MI 48202. E-mail: sarahraz@wayne.edu
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Abstract

Objectives: A limited body of research is available on the relationships between multiplicity of birth and neuropsychological functioning in preterm children who were conceived in the age of assisted reproductive technology and served by the modern neonatal intensive care unit. Our chief objective was to evaluate whether, after adjustment for sociodemographic factors and perinatal complications, twin birth accounted for a unique portion of developmental outcome variance in children born at-risk in the surfactant era. Methods: We compared the neuropsychological functioning of 77 twins and 144 singletons born preterm (<34 gestational weeks) and served by William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI. Children were evaluated at preschool age, using standardized tests of memory, language, perceptual, and motor abilities. Results: Multiple regression analyses, adjusting for sociodemographic and perinatal variables, revealed no differences on memory or motor indices between preterm twins and their singleton counterparts. In contrast, performance of language and visual processing tasks was significantly lower in twins despite reduced perinatal risk in comparison to singletons. Effect sizes ranged from .33 to .38 standard deviations for global language and visual processing ability indices, respectively. No significant group by sex interactions were observed, and comparison of first-, or second-born twins with singletons yielded medium effect sizes (Cohen’s d=.56 and .40, respectively). Conclusions: The modest twin disadvantage on language and visual processing tasks at preschool-age could not be readily attributable to socioeconomic or perinatal variables. The possibility of biological or social twinning-related phenomena as mechanisms underlying the observed performance gaps are discussed. (JINS, 2016, 22, 865–877)

Keywords

Neonatal prematurityBirth weightBirth orderLanguage developmentVisual perceptionMotor skills
Type
Research Articles
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 22 , Issue 9 , October 2016 , pp. 865 - 877
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2016 

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