Compared to full term , premature infants exhibit significant differences in sleep structure , which mainly include differences in electroencephalographic spectral values , in total sleep time and in arousal threshold .
Furthermore , prematurity seems to be a risk factor of sleep breathing disorders in childhood and adolescence .
Conclusions The alterations in sleep patterns are an outcome of prematurity ( immaturity of nervous system ) as well as of postnatal factors and comorbidities .
Sleep problems in this population of infants seems to be a missing piece of the puzzle of impaired neurodevelopment .
Background Sleep undergoes changes from birth to adulthood , while sleep disorders are associated with various cognitive deficiencies in childhood .
In parallel , prematurity is known to predispose to poor neurodevelopmental outcomes .
Our aim is to provide literature data about factors influencing sleep in the premature infants and sleep outcomes in this population .
Neurodevelopmental outcomes following late and moderate prematurity: a population-based cohort study
Objective There is a paucity of data relating to neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants born late and moderately preterm ( LMPT ; 32 + 0–36 + 6 weeks ) . This paper present the results of a prospect i ve , population -based study of 2-year outcomes following LMPT birth . Design 1130 LMPT and 1255 term-born children were recruited at birth . At 2 years corrected age , parents completed a question naire to assess neurosensory ( vision , hearing , motor ) impairments  and the Parent Report of Children 's Abilities-Revised to identify cognitive impairment . Relative risks for adverse outcomes were adjusted for sex , socio-economic status and small for gestational age , and weighted to account for over-sampling of term-born multiples . Risk factors for cognitive impairment were explored using multivariable analyses . Results Parents of 638 ( 57 % ) LMPT infants and 765 ( 62 % ) controls completed question naires . Among LMPT infants , 1.6 % had neurosensory impairment compared with 0.3 % of controls ( RR 4.89 , 95 % CI 1.07 to 22.25 ) . Cognitive impairments were the most common adverse outcome : LMPT 6.3 % ; controls 2.4 % ( RR 2.09 , 95 % CI 1.19 to 3.64 ) . LMPT infants were at twice the risk for neurodevelopmental disability ( RR 2.19 , 95 % CI 1.27 to 3.75 ) . Independent risk factors for cognitive impairment in LMPT infants were male sex , socio-economic disadvantage , non-white ethnicity , preeclampsia and not receiving breast milk at discharge . Conclusions Compared with term-born peers , LMPT infants are at double the risk for neurodevelopmental disability at 2 years of age , with the majority of impairments observed in the cognitive domain . Male sex , socio-economic disadvantage and preeclampsia are independent predictors of low cognitive scores following LMPT birth
Compared to full term , premature infants exhibit significant differences in sleep structure , which mainly include differences in electroencephalographic spectral values , in total sleep time and in arousal threshold .
Furthermore , prematurity seems to be a risk factor of sleep breathing disorders in childhood and adolescence .
Conclusions The alterations in sleep patterns are an outcome of prematurity ( immaturity of nervous system ) as well as of postnatal factors and comorbidities .
Sleep problems in this population of infants seems to be a missing piece of the puzzle of impaired neurodevelopment .
Background Sleep undergoes changes from birth to adulthood , while sleep disorders are associated with various cognitive deficiencies in childhood .
In parallel , prematurity is known to predispose to poor neurodevelopmental outcomes .
Our aim is to provide literature data about factors influencing sleep in the premature infants and sleep outcomes in this population .