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Background Fine motor and coordination problems are frequently reported among adolescents born preterm. We aimed to assess performance in hand coordination tasks and to compare concurrent brain activation between adolescents born very preterm and at term at 13 years. Methods A total of 34 right-handed adolescents born very preterm (gestational age less than 32 weeks/birth weight ≤1500 grams) and 37 controls born at term during 2003 to 2006 in Turku University Hospital, Finland, were recruited. At 13 years, finger opposition and diadochokinesis were assessed, and brain functional magnetic resonance imaging data were acquired while the adolescents performed unimanual hand coordination tasks in response to visual cue. Results Adolescents born very preterm performed similar to controls in hand coordination tasks. The very preterm group evoked greater brain activation than the controls in the right precentral gyrus and in the right postcentral gyrus during left-hand finger opposition and in the right postcentral gyrus during left-hand diadochokinesis. Within the very preterm group, lower gestational age was associated with reduced activation in the left superior parietal lobule during right-hand diadochokinesis. Regarding left-hand tasks, lower gestational age was associated with stronger activation in the right cerebellar lobule V and left cerebellar lobule VI during finger opposition and stronger activation in the right superior parietal lobule during diadochokinesis. Conclusions Very preterm birth affected hand coordination-related brain activation. Most of the effects were found for nondominant hand. Clinical performance during the hand coordination tasks was similar in adolescents born very preterm and controls.

Objectives: Impairments in visual perception are among the most common developmental difficulties related to being born prematurely, and they are often accompanied by problems in other developmental domains. Neural activation in participants born prematurely and full-term during tasks that assess several areas of visual perception has not been studied. To better understand the neural substrates of the visual perceptual impairments, we compared behavioral performance and brain activations during visual perception tasks in adolescents born very preterm (birth weight ≤1500 g or gestational age, final draft, peerReviewed

AIM To study the association between the Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination (HINE) at age 2 years and neurocognition at age 11 years in children born very preterm. We hypothesized that the HINE at 2 years would be associated with neurocognition, that is, neurological, motor, and cognitive outcomes at 11 years. METHOD A total of 174 children (mean gestational age 29.0wks, SD 2.7; minimum 23.0, maximum 35.9; 95 [55%] males, 79 [45%] females) born very preterm (birthweight ≤1500g/gestational age

Background The objective of this study was to examine how nonverbal skills at age five years relate to visual perception and brain activation during visual perception tasks at age 12 years in very preterm subjects without visual or other neurodevelopmental impairments or major brain pathologies. Methods At age five years, 36 prematurely born (birth weight ≤1500 g or gestational age less than 32 weeks) and 31 term-born control children were assessed with the nonverbal subtests of the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Revised and the NEPSY-Second Edition. At age 12 years the same children were re-assessed with tasks from the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test, Third Edition, during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Results Test performance at age five years was significantly poorer in the very preterm group than the control subjects, but at age 12 years performance was similar in both groups. In the very preterm group, better nonverbal skills at age five years were significantly associated with stronger neural activation during the visual perception task at age 12 years. No associations between nonverbal skills at age five years and brain activation at age 12 years appeared in the control group. Conclusions The associations between better nonverbal skills and stronger neural activation during visual perception task only observed in the very preterm group may reflect delayed development of the visual perception network and/or prematurity-related neural plasticity. The developmental follow-up of very preterm children should include psychological assessment of nonverbal skills at least until age five years.

Aim Very preterm children born less than 32 weeks of gestation are at risk for motor difficulties such as cerebral palsy and developmental coordination disorder. This study explores the association between diffusion tensor imaging metrics at term and motor outcomes at 11 years of age. Methods A cohort of 37 very preterm infants (mean gestational age 29 4/7, SD 2 0/7) born in 2004-2006 in Turku University Hospital underwent diffusion tensor imaging at term. A region-of-interest analysis of fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity was performed. Motor outcomes at 11 years of age were measured with the Movement Assessment Battery for Children ? Second Edition. Results The diffusion metrics of the corpus callosum (genu p=0.005, splenium p=0.049), the left corona radiata (p=0.035) and the right optic radiation (p=0.017) were related to later motor performance. Mean diffusivity decreased and fractional anisotropy increased in proportion to the improving performance. Conclusion The diffusion metrics of the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum, the left corona radiata and the right optic radiation at term were associated with motor skills at 11 years of age. Diffusion tensor imaging should be further studied as a potential tool in recognising children at risk for motor impairment.