title: Long-term cognitive outcomes of extremely low-birth-weight infants: the influence of the maternal educational background.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of the present contribution is to analyse the relationships between perinatal risk factors, social parameters and neurodevelopmental outcomes in extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) children up to the age of 10-13 years.
  
  
  METHODS
  Of 200 live-born ELBW infants, 148 were enrolled in the high-risk infant follow-up programme. Each follow-up visit included a neurodevelopmental examination and an interview with the infant's parents. Multivariate analyses using SPSS (version 17.0, Chicago, IL, USA) were conducted, and a p-value of <0.05 indicated a statistically significant result.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results of the logistic regression analysis of the biological and sociodemographic risk factors illustrated that a low maternal educational background is the most important factor (OR, 21.9) associated with a decreased composite intelligence quotient (IQ) in children between 10 and 13 years old. A Grade III or Grade IV intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH) or periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) were also associated with decreased IQ at the age of 10-13 years (OR, 6.9). These results were confirmed by ANOVAs with repeated measurements.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Maternal educational background is the strongest predictor of long-term neurodevelopment in ELBW children. The findings emphasize the need for special support and follow-up care services for poorly educated parents.
authors.affiliation: Sozialpädiatrisches Zentrum and Kinderkrankenhaus auf der Bult, Hannover, Germany. voss@hka.de
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Voss
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jungmann
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wachtendorf
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Neubauer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D003071:Cognition; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D052577:Infant, Extremely Low Birth Weight / Q000254:growth & development*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009035:Mothers; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors