Avaliação das funções executivas de crianças nascidas prematuras moderadas atualmente em idade pré-escolar

Abstract

Preterm labor disrupts the complex process of multisensory stimulation that allows
the brain development of the fetus, which can translate into physical, cognitive,
psychosocial and economic sequelae that affect, in short and long term, children, parents
and communities closer to the child.
The main goal of the present study was to investigate deficits in the executive
functions and socioemotional problems in preterm children between 4 and 6 years of age,
in comparison with their pairs born after 37 gestational weeks.
We studied 30 children born between 31 and 33 gestational weeks and 31 full-term
children, with the Digit Span subtest to evaluate verbal working memory, Corsi Blocks
to assess the non-verbal work memory, with The Shape School Test for evaluation of
verbal inhibitory control and verbal cognitive flexibility and Go/No-Go EYT to evaluate
non-verbal inhibitory control. The Capacities and Difficulties Questionnaires for parents
and teachers were used to assess socioemotional development.
The results indicate that preterm preschoolers show poorer performance in verbal
working memory, non-verbal working memory, verbal inhibitory control and non-verbal
inhibitory control, as well as in verbal cognitive flexibility. At the level of socioemotional
development, emotional problems were the most significant.
Consequently, our results indicate that there is no safe gestational age in the context
of prematurity, so the executive functions of these children should be evaluated at an early
age with the hypothesis of intervention, preventing children born prematurely from
entering primary education in disadvantage with their term colleagues.

Date of Award	15 Jul 2018
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Filipa Ribeiro (Supervisor)