Researchers studying brain scans from premature and full-term babies have zeroed in on differences that may help explain why autism is particularly common among children who were born extremely preterm.
In particular, they associate being 10 weeks or more premature with persistent weakness in brain connections that are important for attention, communication and the processing of emotions.
Calling the news “hopeful,” the study authors suggest that early intervention therapies might be tailored to strengthen these brain networks and improve outcomes.
"The brain is particularly 'plastic' very early in life and potentially could be modified by early intervention," says study leader Cynthia Rogers, a child psychiatrist at Washington University School of Medicine, in St. Louis. "We usually can't begin interventions until after symptoms develop. But what we're trying to do is develop objective measures of brain development in preemies that can indicate whether ... we can intervene with extra support and therapy early on to try to improve outcomes." Such interventions might begin as early as infancy.
Dr. Rogers presented her team’s findings today in Chicago at Neuroscience 2015, the annual scientific meeting of the Society for Neuroscience.
One of every nine infants in the United States is born prematurely, putting them at increased risk of developmental difficulties including autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
To get a better picture of how premature birth affects the brain, the Washington University team used functional magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion tensor brain imaging to compare 58 babies born at full term with 76 infants born 10 weeks or more early.
The premature babies received their brain scans within a few days of their due dates. The full-term babies were scanned on their second or third day of life.
The researchers found that brain networks involved in attention, communication and emotion remained weaker in the premature infants. They propose this to be a possible explanation for why children born prematurely have unusually high rates of neurodevelopmental and mental health disorders such as autism and anxiety.
The preemies also showed weaknesses in two brain networks that previous research has associated with both autism and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
The researchers will continue to follow the children’s development into grade school.
"We're analyzing the data we've already gathered, but we want to bring the children back when they are 9 or 10 and continue to follow their development," Dr. Rogers says. The hope, she says, is to identify persistent brain weaknesses that can be addressed with individualized therapies and educational supports.
See all our Neuroscience 2015 coverage here.
