U. S. Mainland-Born and Non-Mainland-Born Children Referred for Special Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ebworth, Miriam Eisenstein; Gottlieb, Jay; Gottlieb, Barbara; Goldstein, Marjorie; Bennett, Justin B.

2011-01-01

In this study, we compared the referrals for special education evaluation of U.S. mainland-born children with those of mostly Latino non-mainland-born children in two school systems in the Northeastern United States. The investigation focused on whether there was a significant difference between referrals for special education from each group,…

Hispanic Fathers and Risk for Maltreatment in Father-Involved Families of Young Children

PubMed Central

Lee, Shawna J.; Altschul, Inna; Shair, Sarah R.; Taylor, Catherine A.

2011-01-01

The Hispanic population is the fastest growing segment of U.S. population. However, risks for child maltreatment in the foreign-born and native-born Hispanic populations are largely understudied. To address this knowledge gap, we explore the association of sociodemographic factors, psychosocial parenting factors, and nativity status with Hispanic fathers’ aggression toward their young children (3 to 5 years). Using the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and the follow-up In-Home Longitudinal Study of Pre-School Aged Children, we examine data for 372 foreign-born (FB; n = 155) and native-born (NB; n = 217) Hispanic biological fathers residing in the home when the study target child was 3 years old. Results of analysis at the bivariate level show FB Hispanic fathers engage in fewer aggressive behaviors than NB Hispanic, White, or Black fathers. Time-lagged path models of Hispanic fathers show FB Hispanic fathers use less aggression than NB Hispanic fathers. Length of time in the United States was not associated with parenting aggression. Path models also examine paternal psychosocial factors such as alcohol use, depression, parenting stress, and involvement in caregiving, and control for the child’s aggressive behavior. Results suggest one reason Hispanic children do not face heightened risk for child welfare involvement, despite socioeconomic risks, is that FB Hispanic fathers use less aggression toward their young children. An implication of this finding is that socioeconomic and parenting behavior risks must be considered separately when practitioners are considering issues related to the representation of minority children in the child welfare system. PMID:22624074

The Intergenerational Legacy of Genocidal Rape: The Realities and Perspectives of Children Born of the Rwandan Genocide.

PubMed

Denov, Myriam; Woolner, Leah; Bahati, Jules Pacifique; Nsuki, Paulin; Shyaka, Obed

2017-05-01

Brutal acts of sexual violence were documented on a mass scale during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. While existing scholarship on sexual violence has significantly increased our understanding of the challenges confronting survivors, gaps in knowledge remain regarding the lived experiences of children born of genocidal rape. This study sought to explore the realities and perspectives of children born of genocidal rape, and the existing opportunities and challenges they experienced in postgenocide Rwanda. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with 60 participants born of genocidal rape in Rwanda. Findings highlight the key challenges that these youth face in the postgenocide context, including struggles with identity and belonging, ambivalence in the mother-child relationship, and a desire to learn of their biological origins and heritage. The findings suggest that children born of conflict-related sexual violence face a distinct set of challenges and needs that have yet to be formally addressed. Our findings highlight the need for the development of programs, policies, and services specific for this important, yet overlooked group of young people affected by armed conflict.

Social development of children born very preterm: a systematic review.

PubMed

Ritchie, Kirsten; Bora, Samudragupta; Woodward, Lianne J

2015-10-01

To review systematically studies examining the development of social competence in children born very preterm (VPT) (gestation <33 wks) and identify neonatal and family predictors. Peer-reviewed original articles were extracted from PubMed and PsycINFO following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Selection criteria included children born VPT and comparison children born at term, sample born after 1990, and children assessed between 0 and 17 years on at least one measure of social competence spanning social adjustment, performance, and/or social skills. Twenty-three studies were included. Seven focused on social competence and another 16 examined social competence within a range of outcomes. Study quality was low. Limitations included reliance on single informant data, cross-sectional measurement, use of brief screening tools, absence of child or peer report, and no conceptual model. In terms of social adjustment, 16 out of 21 studies found children born VPT had more peer problems and social withdrawal. Findings of social performance were mixed, with some studies suggesting differences in prosocial behavior (4/14) and others not. Social skills were assessed in four studies and showed children born VPT had poorer skills than children born at term. Predictors of social competence included gestational age, neonatal brain abnormalities, and family socio-economic status. Children born VPT have poorer social competence. These difficulties emerge early and persist throughout childhood. © 2015 Mac Keith Press.

Food Insecurity and Risk of Poor Health Among US-Born Children of Immigrants

PubMed Central

Black, Maureen M.; Berkowitz, Carol; Casey, Patrick H.; Cook, John; Cutts, Diana; Jacobs, Ruth Rose; Heeren, Timothy; de Cuba, Stephanie Ettinger; Coleman, Sharon; Meyers, Alan; Frank, Deborah A.

2009-01-01

Objectives. We investigated the risk of household food insecurity and reported fair or poor health among very young children who were US citizens and whose mothers were immigrants compared with those whose mothers had been born in the United States. Methods. Data were obtained from 19 275 mothers (7216 of whom were immigrants) who were interviewed in hospital-based settings between 1998 and 2005 as part of the Children's Sentinel Nutrition Assessment Program. We examined whether food insecurity mediated the association between immigrant status and child health in relation to length of stay in the United States. Results. The risk of fair or poor health was higher among children of recent immigrants than among children of US-born mothers (odds ratio [OR] = 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02, 1.55; P < .03). Immigrant households were at higher risk of food insecurity than were households with US-born mothers. Newly arrived immigrants were at the highest risk of food insecurity (OR = 2.45; 95% CI = 2.16, 2.77; P < .001). Overall, household food insecurity increased the risk of fair or poor child health (OR = 1.74; 95% CI = 1.57, 1.93; P < .001) and mediated the association between immigrant status and poor child health. Conclusions. Children of immigrant mothers are at increased risk of fair or poor health and household food insecurity. Policy interventions addressing food insecurity in immigrant households may promote child health. PMID:19106417

Magic moment? Maternal marriage for children born out of wedlock.

PubMed

Gibson-Davis, Christina

2014-08-01

To test the existence of the "magic moment" for parental marriage immediately post-birth and to inform policies that preferentially encourage biological over step parent marriage, this study estimates the incidence and stability of maternal marriage for children born out of wedlock. Data came from the National Survey of Family Growth on 5,255 children born non maritally. By age 15, 29 % of children born non maritally experienced a biological-father marriage, and 36 % experienced a stepfather marriage. Stepfather marriages occurred much later in a child's life-one-half occurred after the child turned age 7-and had one-third higher odds of dissolution. Children born to black mothers had qualitatively different maternal marriage experiences than children born to white or Hispanic mothers, with less biological-parent marriage and higher incidences of divorce. Findings support the existence of the magic moment and demonstrate that biological marriages were more enduring than stepfather marriages. Yet relatively few children born out of wedlock experienced stable, biological-parent marriages as envisioned by marriage promotion programs.

Insulin resistance in young adults born small for gestational age (SGA).

PubMed

Putzker, Stephanie; Bechtold-Dalla Pozza, Susanne; Kugler, Karl; Schwarz, Hans P; Bonfig, Walter

2014-03-01

This work aimed to assess glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity in young adults born small for gestational age (SGA) as well as to measure the body composition and adipocytokines of these subjects. A total of 108 out of 342 SGA-born participants were invited for reexamination from the former Bavarian Longitudinal Study (BLS), in which 7505 risk-newborns of the years 1985 to 1986 were prospectively followed. Of these, 76 (34 female/42 male) participants at the age of 19.7±0.5 years were enrolled. Clinical examination and oral glucose tolerance testing (oGTT) was performed with assessment of insulin resistance indices, HbA1c, body mass index (BMI), adipocytokines, and body composition by bioimpedance analysis (BIA). A total of 25 out of 76 (32.9%) patients had abnormal fasting and/or glucose-stimulated insulin levels. Glucose values measured during oGTT showed no abnormalities, except one participant who had impaired glucose tolerance. Homeostasis model assessment insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) was 1.92±4.2, and insulin sensitivity index by Matsuda (ISI(Matsuda)) showed mean values of 7.85±4.49. HOMA-IR>2.5 was found in 8 patients (10.5%), and 20 patients (26.3%) had an ISI(Matsuda)<5, both interpreted as insulin resistant. No alterations of adipocytokines were found. Fat mass (FM) measured by BIA was within the normal range for both genders and correlated significantly with BMI (r=0.465, p<0.001) and leptin (r=0.668, p>0.001), but not with adiponectin. Insulin resistance correlated with change in weight-for-height Z-score during the first 3 months of age, indicating that weight gain during that early phase might be a risk factor for the development of insulin resistance in children born SGA. A high percentage of insulin-resistant subjects were reconfirmed in a large German cohort of young adults born SGA. Therefore, regular screening for disturbances in glucose metabolism is recommended in these subjects.

Neurological development of children born to mothers after kidney transplantation.

PubMed

Schreiber-Zamora, Joanna; Szpotanska-Sikorska, Monika; Drozdowska-Szymczak, Agnieszka; Czaplinska, Natalia; Pietrzak, Bronisława; Wielgos, Miroslaw; Kociszewska-Najman, Bozena

2017-12-03

Pregnancies after kidney transplantation are at high risk of complications such as preterm birth and foetal growth restriction. Until now, the impact of these factors on neurological development of children born to transplant mothers has not been established. A comparison of neurological examinations performed in 36 children of kidney transplant women (study group) and 36 children born to healthy mothers (control group). The children from both groups were born at a similar gestational age and in the similar time period from 12/1996 to 09/2012. Neurological examinations were performed from 07/2010 to 11/2013. Each examination was adjusted to the patient's age and performed after the neonatal period. Three years later children were re-consulted, if they presented neurological deviations or were less than 12 months old at the time of the first examination. Normal neurological development was found in 86% of children in both groups (p = .999). Mild neurological deviations were observed in four (11%) children born to kidney transplant mothers and in five (14%) children born to healthy mothers (p = .999). Moderate deviations were diagnosed in one premature child born to transplant mother, whose pregnancy was complicated with a severe preeclampsia and foetal growth restriction. In the study population, no severe neurological disorders were found. Almost all (8/10) children with neurological deviations were born prematurely in good general conditions. The neurological deviations observed in the first year of life were mild and transient. In children over 1 year of age, deviations were more pronounced and continued to maintain. The neurological development of children of kidney transplant women is similar to that of the general population and possible deviations seem to be the result of intrauterine hypotrophy and prematurity. Therefore, in clinical practice, it is necessary to plan post-transplant pregnancies especially in women at high risk of these complications.

Neurological development of children born to liver transplant recipients.

PubMed

Schreiber-Zamora, J; Kociszewska-Najman, B; Borek-Dzięcioł, B; Drozdowska-Szymczak, A; Czaplińska, N; Pawlik, O; Cyganek, A; Pietrzak, B; Wielgoś, M

2014-10-01

Immunosuppressive treatment used in pregnant liver recipients may have a negative impact on fetal development and successively a child. The aim of the study was to make a neurological assessment of infants and children born to liver transplant recipients (LTRs) born between December 4, 2001, and February 11, 2013, in the 1(st) Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical University of Warsaw. The study involved 88 children, of whom 44 children were born to LTR mothers, and 44 children born to women who were not organ recipients and delivered at a similar gestational age. The gestational age of neonates ranged from 33 to 41 weeks, and the birth weight ranged from 1420 g to 4100 g. The neurological examination was performed in children from 7 weeks to 10 years of age. The neurological development was assessed by a specialist in pediatric neurology. The results of the examination were divided according to the following criteria: 1) normal development, 2) slight disorders, 3) moderate disorders, and 4) severe disorders. The Fisher's exact test was used for statistical analysis. Normal development was found in 35 of 44 (79.54%) children in the LTR group and 39 of 44 (88.63%) children in the control group (P = .3827). Slight disorders were observed in 6 of 44 (13.63%) children in LTR group and 5 of 44 (11.36%) children in the control group. Moderate disorders were found only in 3 of 44 (6.81%) children in the LTR group. No severe disorders were observed in both groups. Neurological development of children born to the liver recipients who were exposed to chronic immunosuppressive treatment in their fetal lives is the same as that of children whose mothers have not undergone organ transplantation.

Growth and development in children born very low birthweight

PubMed Central

Scharf, Rebecca J; Stroustrup, Annemarie; Conaway, Mark R; DeBoer, Mark D

2017-01-01

Objective To examine the relationships between growth (birth to age 2 years) and developmental outcomes in children born with very low birthweight (VLBW). Design Motor and mental development in children born with VLBW were regressed on anthropometric measurements at birth, 9 months and 2 years using multivariable regression. Setting The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study—Birth Cohort, a longitudinal cohort, community sample, designed to be representative of children born across the USA. Patients 950 children born with VLBW (<1500 g). Main Outcome Measures Motor and cognitive scores on the Bayley Scales at 9 months and 24 months chronological age. Results A high proportion of children exhibited poor growth, with length-for-age z-scores <−2 (ie, stunting) in 21.3% of children at 9 months (adjusted for prematurity) and 34.2% of children at 2 years. Compared with children having z-scores >−2, children with growth shortfalls in head circumference, length and weight had a higher adjusted OR (aOR) of low Bayley motor scores at 9 months and 2 years (aOR ranging from 1.8 to 3.3, all p<0.05), while low Bayley cognitive scores were predicted by 9-month deficits in length and weight (aOR 2.0 and 2.4, respectively, both p<0.01) and 2-year deficits in length and head circumference (aOR 2.9 and 2.8, both p<0.05). Conclusion Anthropometric measures of growth were linked to current and future neurodevelopmental outcomes in children born with VLBW. While careful length measures may be a particularly useful marker, deficits in all anthropometric measures were risk factors for developmental delays. PMID:26627552

The Magic of Rhythm Instruments: Developing Musical Awareness in Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Connors, Abigail

2006-01-01

Young children are natural-born musicians and rhythm instruments provide a wonderful bridge between a toddler's innate need to make noise and a child's true musical awareness and expressiveness. Rhythm instrument activities are so easy. With most of them, the child is simply copying one motion at a time. There is nothing to remember. Another…

Developmental outcomes of Japanese children born through Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) in toddlerhood.

PubMed

Aoki, Sayaka; Hashimoto, Keiji; Ogawa, Kohei; Horikawa, Reiko; Sago, Haruhiko

2018-05-01

This study aimed to investigate developmental outcomes of Japanese babies born through Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) at ages 2 and 3. The data were gathered from 1085 children in a hospital-based cohort study conducted in Japan. The children's level of development was assessed through a parent-rated questionnaire, the Kinder Infant Development Scale, which consists of nine developmental domains. We compared the development of children born through ART and those born naturally by conducting analyses of covariance. For the analyses, the effect of maternal age, family income, parental education and multiple birth were controlled for. At 24 months, no significant difference was found between children born through ART and those born naturally in development in any domain. At 36 months, a significant difference was found in development of Receptive language (F (1, 845) = 6.148, P = 0.013), Expressive language (F (1, 845) = 4.060, P = 0.044) and Language concept (F (1, 845) = 6.968, P = 0.008). For these domains, children born through ART had a significantly higher developmental age compared to children born naturally. At age 2, no significant difference was found between the children born through ART and those born naturally in nine developmental domains, although at age 3, the children born through ART showed significantly better language development than the children born naturally. © 2018 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Familial Influences on Poverty Among Young Children in Black Immigrant, U.S.-born Black, and Nonblack Immigrant Families

PubMed Central

Thomas, Kevin J. A.

2014-01-01

This study examines how familial contexts affect poverty disparities between the children of immigrant and U.S.-born blacks, and among black and nonblack children of immigrants. Despite lower gross child poverty rates in immigrant than in U.S.-born black families, accounting for differences in family structure reveals that child poverty risks among blacks are highest in single-parent black immigrant families. In addition, within two-parent immigrant families, child poverty declines associated with increasing assimilation are greater than the respective declines in single-parent families. The heads of black immigrant households have more schooling than those of native-black households. However, increased schooling has a weaker negative association with child poverty among the former than among the latter. In terms of racial disparities among the children of immigrants, poverty rates are higher among black than nonblack children. This black disadvantage is, however, driven by the outcomes of first-generation children of African and Hispanic-black immigrants. The results also show that although children in refugee families face elevated poverty risks, these risks are higher among black than among nonblack children of refugees. In addition, the poverty-reducing impact associated with having an English-proficient household head is about three times lower among black children of immigrants than among non-Hispanic white children of immigrants. PMID:21491186

Growth and development in children born very low birthweight.

PubMed

Scharf, Rebecca J; Stroustrup, Annemarie; Conaway, Mark R; DeBoer, Mark D

2016-09-01

To examine the relationships between growth (birth to age 2 years) and developmental outcomes in children born with very low birthweight (VLBW). Motor and mental development in children born with VLBW were regressed on anthropometric measurements at birth, 9 months and 2 years using multivariable regression. The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort, a longitudinal cohort, community sample, designed to be representative of children born across the USA. 950 children born with VLBW (<1500 g). Motor and cognitive scores on the Bayley Scales at 9 months and 24 months chronological age. A high proportion of children exhibited poor growth, with length-for-age z-scores <-2 (ie, stunting) in 21.3% of children at 9 months (adjusted for prematurity) and 34.2% of children at 2 years. Compared with children having z-scores >-2, children with growth shortfalls in head circumference, length and weight had a higher adjusted OR (aOR) of low Bayley motor scores at 9 months and 2 years (aOR ranging from 1.8 to 3.3, all p<0.05), while low Bayley cognitive scores were predicted by 9-month deficits in length and weight (aOR 2.0 and 2.4, respectively, both p<0.01) and 2-year deficits in length and head circumference (aOR 2.9 and 2.8, both p<0.05). Anthropometric measures of growth were linked to current and future neurodevelopmental outcomes in children born with VLBW. While careful length measures may be a particularly useful marker, deficits in all anthropometric measures were risk factors for developmental delays. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

An interview study of young adults born to mothers with mild intellectual disability.

PubMed

Lindblad, Ida; Billstedt, Eva; Gillberg, Christopher; Fernell, Elisabeth

2013-12-01

A group of 10 young adults from a population-based series in Sweden, of originally 42 individuals, born to mothers with mild intellectual disability (ID), were interviewed with regard to their experiences during childhood, adolescence, and their current situation. The interview revealed that 6 of the 10 individuals had been removed from their biological parents during childhood, 6 reported clear child abuse and/or neglect, and 6 individuals had mild ID. The majority of the individuals reported difficulties in their relations with family and in school. The small number of participants (n = 10) who could be personally interviewed reflected the major problems that were encountered in the process of making contact with this group of young individuals. In conclusion, this study adds to other reports that children of mothers with ID constitute an extremely vulnerable group. Therefore, these families need full and continuous attention from the supportive systems in society.

Neurocognitive outcome in young adults born late-preterm.

PubMed

Heinonen, Kati; Lahti, Jari; Sammallahti, Sara; Wolke, Dieter; Lano, Aulikki; Andersson, Sture; Pesonen, Anu-Katriina; Eriksson, Johan G; Kajantie, Eero; Raikkonen, Katri

2018-03-01

This study examined whether late-preterm birth (34+0 to 36+6wks+d gestational age) was associated with neurocognitive deficit in young adulthood, and whether small for gestational age (SGA) birth amplified any adversity. Participants derived from the prospective regional cohort study, the Arvo Ylppö Longitudinal Study (n=786; 398 females, 388 males) (mean age 25y 4mo, SD 8mo), born 1985 to 1986 late-preterm (n=119; 21 SGA, <-2 SD) and at term (37+0 to 41+6wks+d; n=667; 28 SGA) underwent tests of intelligence, executive functioning, attention, and memory, and reported their education. Those born late-preterm scored -3.71 (95% confidence interval [CI] -6.71 to -0.72) and -3.11 (95% CI -6.01 to -0.22) points lower on Full-scale and Verbal IQ than peers born at term. Compared with those born at term and appropriate for gestational age (≥-2 to <2 SD) Full-scale, Verbal, and Performance IQ scores of those born late-preterm and SGA were -9.45 to -11.84 points lower. After adjustments, differences were rendered non-significant, except that scores in Full-scale and Performance IQ remained lower among those born late-preterm and SGA. Late-preterm birth, per se, may not increase the risk of poorer neurocognitive functioning in adulthood. But the double burden of being born late-preterm and SGA seems to increase this risk. Late-preterm birth did not increase the risk of poorer neurocognitive functioning in adulthood. But the double burden of being born late-preterm and being small for gestational age did increase this risk. © 2017 Mac Keith Press.

Social Competence of Preschool Children Born Very Preterm

PubMed Central

Jones, Kelly M.; Champion, Patricia R.; Woodward, Lianne J.

2014-01-01

Background Relatively little is known about the early social development of children born very preterm despite clear suggestions of later interpersonal difficulties. Aims To compare the social competence of very preterm (VPT) and full term (FT) born children at age 4 and identify infant, social and family factors associated with later risk. Study design Prospective longitudinal study. Subjects A regionally representative cohort of 103 VPT (≤32 weeks gestation) children and a comparison group of 105 FT children (36-41 weeks gestation) born between 1998 and 2000. Outcome measures At corrected age 4 years, a range of parent report, observational and laboratory measures assessed children's emotional and behavioral adjustment, emotional regulation, social interactive behavior and theory of mind understanding. Extensive perinatal, social background and family functioning data were also available from birth to age 4. Results Compared to their FT peers, VPT born children had poorer emotional and behavioural adjustment, were less effective in regulating their emotions, had lower levels of positive peer play and had less synchronous interactions with their parents. Within the VPT group, predictors of poor social competence included family socioeconomic disadvantage, extreme prematurity, severity of cerebral white matter abnormalities and early childhood exposure to high levels of maternal anxiety and negative parenting. Conclusions VPT pre-schoolers are characterized by a range of subtle social difficulties likely to adversely affect their ability to establish and maintain positive relationships with others. These difficulties need to be monitored alongside other potential neurodevelopmental concerns and parents supported to actively nurture child social competence. PMID:23870752

Language functions in preterm-born children: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

van Noort-van der Spek, Inge L; Franken, Marie-Christine J P; Weisglas-Kuperus, Nynke

2012-04-01

Preterm-born children (<37 weeks' gestation) have higher rates of language function problems compared with term-born children. It is unknown whether these problems decrease, deteriorate, or remain stable over time. The goal of this research was to determine the developmental course of language functions in preterm-born children from 3 to 12 years of age. Computerized databases Embase, PubMed, Web of Knowledge, and PsycInfo were searched for studies published between January 1995 and March 2011 reporting language functions in preterm-born children. Outcome measures were simple language function assessed by using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test and complex language function assessed by using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals. Pooled effect sizes (in terms of Cohen's d) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for simple and complex language functions were calculated by using random-effects models. Meta-regression was conducted with mean difference of effect size as the outcome variable and assessment age as the explanatory variable. Preterm-born children scored significantly lower compared with term-born children on simple (d = -0.45 [95% CI: -0.59 to -0.30]; P < .001) and on complex (d = -0.62 [95% CI: -0.82 to -0.43]; P < .001) language function tests, even in the absence of major disabilities and independent of social economic status. For complex language function (but not for simple language function), group differences between preterm- and term-born children increased significantly from 3 to 12 years of age (slope = -0.05; P = .03). While growing up, preterm-born children have increasing difficulties with complex language function.

Visuospatial perception in children born preterm with no major neurological disorders.

PubMed

Butcher, Phillipa R; Bouma, Anke; Stremmelaar, Elisabeth F; Bos, Arend F; Smithson, Michael; Van Braeckel, Koenraad N J A

2012-11-01

Many investigations have found deficits in visuospatial perception in children born preterm, however, it is not clear whether the deficits are specific to visuospatial perception or the consequences of deficits in other functional areas, which often accompany preterm birth. This study investigated whether children born preterm show a specific deficit in visuospatial perception. Fifty-six 7- to 11-year-old preterm born children (gestational age <34 weeks) without cerebral palsy and 51 age-matched, full-term children completed four computerized tasks tapping different levels and types of visuospatial perception. Accuracy and speed of responses were recorded. Task formats were designed to reduce demands on attentional deployment. Measures of intelligence and parental education were included in the analysis. Children born preterm performed less accurately and/or less rapidly on all tasks. Their poorer performance did not reflect differences in speed-accuracy trade-off. Parental education and IQ, both significantly lower in the preterm children, contributed positively to performance on all tasks. IQ mediated the association between preterm birth and visuospatial performance on the most cognitively demanding task. Children born preterm performed more poorly than full-term controls on four visuospatial perceptual tasks. Although intelligence and parental education were also associated with performance, preterm birth contributed independently of these factors on three of four tasks. Many children born preterm are thus multiply disadvantaged on visuospatial tasks: the lower IQ scores and parental educational levels frequently found in this group increase the deficit associated with preterm birth. (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

Prevalence and predictors of home and automobile smoking bans and child environmental tobacco smoke exposure: a cross-sectional study of U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanic women with young children.

PubMed

Gonzales, Melissa; Malcoe, Lorraine Halinka; Kegler, Michelle C; Espinoza, Judith

2006-10-27

Detrimental effects of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure on child health are well documented. Because young children's primary exposure to ETS occurs in homes and automobiles, voluntary smoking restrictions can substantially reduce exposure. We assessed the prevalence of home and automobile smoking bans among U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanics in the southwestern United States, and examined the influence of mother's country of birth and smoking practices on voluntary smoking bans and on child ETS exposure. U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanic mothers of children aged 2 through 12 years were systematically sampled from health clinics in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In-person interviews were conducted with 269 mothers (75.4% response rate) to obtain information on main study outcomes (complete versus no/partial home and automobile smoking bans; child room and automobile ETS exposure) and risk factors (mother's country of birth, maternal and household smoking behaviors). Data were analyzed with chi square tests and logistic regression models. Three-fourths (74-77%) of U.S.-born and 90-95% of Mexico-born mothers reported complete automobile and home smoking bans. In multivariate analyses, mother's U.S nativity, mother's current smoking, and presence of other adult smokers in the home were associated with significantly increased odds of not having a complete home or automobile smoking ban. Mother's smoking was associated with child ETS exposure both indoors (odds ratio [OR] = 3.31) and in automobiles (OR = 2.97). Children of U.S.-born mothers had increased odds of exposure to ETS indoors (OR = 3.24; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.37-7.69), but not in automobiles. Having complete smoking bans was associated with substantially reduced odds of child ETS exposure both indoors (OR = 0.10; 95% CI: 0.04-0.27) and in automobiles (OR = 0.14; 95% CI: 0.05-0.36). This study of Hispanic mothers in the southwestern U.S. indicates that there are substantial differences between U.S.- and

Prevalence and predictors of home and automobile smoking bans and child environmental tobacco smoke exposure: a cross-sectional study of U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanic women with young children

PubMed Central

Gonzales, Melissa; Malcoe, Lorraine Halinka; Kegler, Michelle C; Espinoza, Judith

2006-01-01

Background Detrimental effects of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure on child health are well documented. Because young children's primary exposure to ETS occurs in homes and automobiles, voluntary smoking restrictions can substantially reduce exposure. We assessed the prevalence of home and automobile smoking bans among U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanics in the southwestern United States, and examined the influence of mother's country of birth and smoking practices on voluntary smoking bans and on child ETS exposure. Methods U.S.- and Mexico-born Hispanic mothers of children aged 2 through 12 years were systematically sampled from health clinics in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In-person interviews were conducted with 269 mothers (75.4% response rate) to obtain information on main study outcomes (complete versus no/partial home and automobile smoking bans; child room and automobile ETS exposure) and risk factors (mother's country of birth, maternal and household smoking behaviors). Data were analyzed with chi square tests and logistic regression models. Results Three-fourths (74–77%) of U.S.-born and 90–95% of Mexico-born mothers reported complete automobile and home smoking bans. In multivariate analyses, mother's U.S nativity, mother's current smoking, and presence of other adult smokers in the home were associated with significantly increased odds of not having a complete home or automobile smoking ban. Mother's smoking was associated with child ETS exposure both indoors (odds ratio [OR] = 3.31) and in automobiles (OR = 2.97). Children of U.S.-born mothers had increased odds of exposure to ETS indoors (OR = 3.24; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.37–7.69), but not in automobiles. Having complete smoking bans was associated with substantially reduced odds of child ETS exposure both indoors (OR = 0.10; 95% CI: 0.04–0.27) and in automobiles (OR = 0.14; 95% CI: 0.05–0.36). Conclusion This study of Hispanic mothers in the southwestern U.S. indicates that

The shape of things to come? Obesity prevalence among foreign-born vs. US-born Mexican youth in California

PubMed Central

Buttenheim, Alison M.; Pebley, Anne R.; Hsih, Katie; Chung, Chang Y.; Goldman, Noreen

2013-01-01

Obesity among the Mexican-origin adult population in the US has been associated with longer stays in the US and with being US- vs. Mexican-born, two proxies for acculturation. This pattern is less clear for Mexican-origin children and young adults: recent evidence suggests that it may be reversed, with foreign-born Mexican youth in the US at higher risk of obesity than their US-born Mexican–American counterparts. The objective of this study is to evaluate the hypothesis that the immigrant advantage in obesity prevalence for Mexican-origin populations in the US does not hold for children and young adults. We use data from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey (N = 1143) and the California Health Interview Survey (N = 25,487) for respondents ages 4–24 to calculate the odds of overweight/obesity by ethnicity and nativity. We find support for the hypothesis that overweight/obesity prevalence is not significantly lower for first-generation compared to second- and third-generation Mexican-origin youth. Significantly higher obesity prevalence among the first generation was observed for young adult males (ages 18–24) and adolescent females (ages 12–17). The previously-observed protective effect against obesity risk among recent adult immigrants does not hold for Mexican-origin youth. PMID:23273875

Cancer risk in children born after donor ART.

PubMed

Williams, C L; Bunch, K J; Murphy, M F G; Stiller, C A; Botting, B J; Wallace, W H; Davies, M C; Sutcliffe, A G

2018-01-01

Do children born after donor ART have an increased risk of developing childhood cancer in comparison to the general population? This study showed no overall increased risk of childhood cancer in individuals born after donor ART. Most large population-based studies have shown no increase in overall childhood cancer incidence after non-donor ART; however, other studies have suggested small increased risks in specific cancer types, including haematological cancers. Cancer risk specifically in children born after donor ART has not been investigated to date. This retrospective cohort study utilized record linkage to determine the outcome status of all children born in Great Britain (1992-2008) after donor ART. The cohort included 12 137 members who contributed 95 389 person-years of follow-up (average follow-up 7.86 years). Records of all children born in Great Britain (England, Wales, Scotland) after all forms of donor ART (1992-2008) were linked to the UK National Registry of Childhood Tumours (NRCT) to determine the number who subsequently developed cancer by 15 years of age, by the end of 2008. Rates of overall and type specific cancer (selected a priori) were compared with age, sex and calendar year standardized population-based rates, stratifying for potential mediating/moderating factors including sex, age at diagnosis, birth weight, multiple births, maternal previous live births, assisted conception type and fresh/ cryopreserved cycles. In our cohort of 12 137 children born after donor ART (52% male, 55% singleton births), no overall increased risk of cancer was identified. There were 12 cancers detected compared to 14.4 expected (standardized incidence ratio (SIR) 0.83; 95% CI 0.43-1.45; P = 0.50). A small, significant increased risk of hepatoblastoma was found, but the numbers and absolute risks were small (<5 cases observed; SIR 10.28; 95% CI 1.25-37.14; P < 0.05). This increased hepatoblastoma risk was associated with low birthweight. Although this study

Health outcomes for children born to teen mothers in Cape Town, South Africa1

PubMed Central

Ardington, Cally; Leibbrandt, Murray

2014-01-01

This paper analyzes whether children born to teen mothers in Cape Town, South Africa are disadvantaged in terms of their health outcomes because their mother is a teen. Exploiting the longitudinal nature of the Cape Area Panel Study, we assess whether observable differences between teen mothers and slightly older mothers can explain why first-born children of teen mothers appear disadvantaged. Our balanced regressions indicate that observed characteristics cannot explain the full extent of disadvantage of being born to a teen mother, with children born to teen mothers continuing to have significantly worse child health outcomes, especially among coloured children. In particular, children born to teens are more likely to be underweight at birth and to be stunted with the disadvantage for coloured children four times the size for African children. PMID:26052156

Parental characteristics and the schooling progress of the children of immigrant and U.S.-born blacks.

PubMed

Thomas, Kevin J A

2009-08-01

In this study, I examine disparities in schooling progress among children born to immigrant and U.S.-born blacks. I find that in one- and two-parent families, children born to black immigrants are less likely to fall behind in school than those born to U.S.-born blacks. In two-parent immigrant families, children born to two immigrant parents have a significant schooling advantage over children born to one immigrant parent. While children born to two immigrant parents in the wealthiest black immigrant families do better in the second generation than in the first, the reverse is observed among children in less wealthy families. These findings contribute in two ways to our understanding of the assimilation processes of children born to black immigrant parents. First, they show that there is a positive association between the number of immigrant parents in a family and children's schooling performance. Second, they suggest that disparities in the assimilation patterns of the children of black immigrants are a likely product of the interaction between their parental characteristics and the socioeconomic circumstances of their families.

A register study of life events in young adults born to mothers with mild intellectual disability.

PubMed

Lindblad, Ida; Billstedt, Eva; Gillberg, Christopher; Fernell, Elisabeth

2014-12-01

Young adults, born to population-representative mothers with intellectual disability (ID), were targeted for psychosocial/life event follow-up. The whole group originally comprised 42 individuals but 3 had died and 1 had moved abroad. The remaining 38 were approached and 10 consented to participate in an interview study. However, of the remaining 28, it was not possible to establish contact with 21 who were instead searched for in various official registers. Most (n = 18) individuals in the study group had been in contact with different authorities and clinics. Of the 21 individuals, 10 had contact with social services since childhood and 4 of these had been taken into care (foster family) and 6 had had contact families during childhood. One individual had been taken into a treatment centre and one grew up mainly with the father. Altogether 12 (57%) of 21 individuals did not grow up full-time with their biological mother. Twelve (57%) had major neurodevelopmental/neuropsychiatric conditions, including five with ID and seven with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Four individuals were registered within the Prison and Probation Service due to various types of crimes. Individuals born to mothers with ID in our study group were at high risk of adverse experiences and negative outcomes, such as increased childhood mortality, a relatively large proportion of children taken into care, high rates of ID and ADHD in the children and of criminality in young adulthood. Taken together with the results obtained in an in-depth interview study of those in the originally targeted sample with whom it was possible to obtain contact, the present findings suggest that it will be important to provide early support and longitudinal developmental follow-up in groups of children growing up with a mother with ID. Children in this situation appear to be at a number of risks, probably related both to hereditary factors and to social disadvantage. © The Author(s) 2014.

The relationship between sleep problems and working memory in children born very preterm.

PubMed

McCann, Marie; Bayliss, Donna M; Anderson, Mike; Campbell, Catherine; French, Noel; McMichael, Judy; Reid, Corinne; Bucks, Romola S

2018-01-01

In two studies, the relationship between sleep and working memory performance was investigated in children born very preterm (i.e., gestation less than 32 weeks) and the possible mechanisms underlying this relationship. In Study 1, parent-reported measures of snoring, night-time sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness were collected on 89 children born very preterm aged 6 to 7 years. The children completed a verbal working memory task, as well as measures of processing speed and verbal storage capacity. Night-time sleep quality was found to be associated with verbal working memory performance over and above the variance associated with individual differences in processing speed and storage capacity, suggesting that poor sleep may have an impact on the executive component of working memory. Snoring and daytime sleepiness were not found to be associated with working memory performance. Study 2 introduced a direct measure of executive functioning and examined whether sleep problems would differentially impact the executive functioning of children born very preterm relative to children born to term. Parent-reported sleep problems were collected on 43 children born very preterm and 48 children born to term (aged 6 to 9 years). Problematic sleep was found to adversely impact executive functioning in the very preterm group, while no effect of sleep was found in the control group. These findings implicate executive dysfunction as a possible mechanism by which problematic sleep adversely impacts upon cognition in children born very preterm, and suggest that sleep problems can increase the cognitive vulnerability already experienced by many of these children.

Increased risk of asthma in overweight children born large for gestational age.

PubMed

Pinto, L A; Guerra, S; Anto, J M; Postma, D; Koppelman, G H; de Jongste, J C; Gehring, U; Smit, H A; Wijga, A H

2017-08-01

Being born large for gestational age (LGA) is a marker of increased growth velocity in fetal life and a risk factor for childhood overweight. Both being born LGA and childhood overweight may influence the development of asthma, although the role of overweight in the association between LGA and childhood asthma is unclear. Importantly, recent studies have suggested that the association between overweight and asthma may be related to non-allergic pathways. If this also applies to the association between LGA and asthma, the association between being born LGA and asthma may be different for atopic and non-atopic children. We investigated the association of being LGA with the prevalence of asthma at age 8 in atopic and non-atopic children and the role of overweight in this association. Complete data on asthma, anthropometry and atopy at age of 8 years, and potential confounders were available for 1608 participants of the PIAMA birth cohort. Odds ratios for the association between LGA and asthma in atopic and non-atopic children were estimated by logistic regression analysis adjusting for potential confounders. Overweight was assessed as a potential modifier of the association between LGA and asthma. Being born LGA was not significantly associated with asthma at age of 8 in atopic and non-atopic children. However, overweight at age of 8 years modified the association between asthma at age of 8 and LGA. In non-atopic children, children who were born LGA and were overweight at age of 8 years had a significantly increased odds of asthma compared to non-LGA, non-overweight children (adj OR 7.04; 95% CI 2.2-24). We observed that non-atopic children born LGA, who were overweight by 8 years have an increased risk of asthma. If confirmed, these findings suggest that non-atopic children born LGA may be identified early in life as a high-risk group for asthma. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The influence of poverty and social support on the perceived health of children born to minority migrant mothers.

PubMed

Van Hulst, Andraea; Séguin, Louise; Zunzunegui, Maria-Victoria; Vélez, Maria P; Nikiéma, Béatrice

2011-06-01

Poverty and low social support are common among minority migrant families. Little is known about their impact on the health of children of minority migrants to Canada. This study examined the associations between maternal perception of child's health and migration status, and examined the specific role of poverty and low social support in these associations. Data from the first two rounds of the Quebec Longitudinal Study of Child Development (QLSCD) were analysed. The sample included 1990 children at 17 months of age, classified according to their mother's migration status: children of minority migrant mothers (n=165) and Canadian-born mothers (n=1825). Maternal perception of child's health status and social support were measured at 17 months, household income was measured at 5 and 17 months. Multivariable logistic regressions were performed; interactions of migration status with poverty and social support were tested. Poverty and low social support were more common among minority migrant mothers than among Canadian-born mothers. Children of minority migrant mothers who were 'never poor' and reported high levels of social support were perceived in better health (OR 0.42; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.19-0.91) than children of Canadian-born mothers (reference group). In contrast, children of minority migrant mothers who were 'always poor' and reported low social support were perceived in worse health (OR 6.32; 95% CI: 1.69-23.71) compared to the reference group. In Quebec, economic hardship and lack of social support are common realities among minority migrants with young children. Combined exposure to poverty and low social support is most detrimental to the perceived health of children of minority migrants.

Development of preschool and academic skills in children born very preterm.

PubMed

Aarnoudse-Moens, Cornelieke Sandrine Hanan; Oosterlaan, Jaap; Duivenvoorden, Hugo Joseph; van Goudoever, Johannes Bernard; Weisglas-Kuperus, Nynke

2011-01-01

To examine performance in preschool and academic skills in very preterm (gestational age ≤ 30 weeks) and term-born comparison children aged 4 to 12 years. Very preterm children (n = 200; mean age, 8.2 ± 2.5 years) born between 1996 and 2004 were compared with 230 term-born children (mean age, 8.3 ± 2.3). The Dutch National Pupil Monitoring System was used to measure preschool numerical reasoning and early linguistics, and primary school simple and complex word reading, reading comprehension, spelling, and mathematics/arithmetic. With univariate analyses of variance, we assessed the effects of preterm birth on performance across grades and on grade retention. In preschool, very preterm children performed comparably with term-born children in early linguistics, but perform more poorly (0.7 standard deviation [SD]) in numerical reasoning skills. In primary school, very preterm children scored 0.3 SD lower in complex word reading and 0.6 SD lower in mathematics/arithmetic, but performed comparably with peers in reading comprehension and spelling. They had a higher grade repeat rate (25.5%), although grade repeat did not improve their academic skills. Very preterm children do well in early linguistics, reading comprehension, and spelling, but have clinically significant deficits in numerical reasoning skills and mathematics/arithmetic, which persist with time. Copyright © 2011 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Poverty among Young Children in Black Immigrant, US-Born Black, and Non-Black Immigrant Families: The Role of Familial Contexts. Discussion Paper Series. DP 2010-02

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomas, Kevin J. A.

2010-01-01

This study examines how familial contexts affect poverty disparities between the children of immigrant and US-born Blacks, and among Black and non-Black children of immigrants. Despite lower gross child poverty rates in immigrant than US-born Black families, accounting for differences in family structure reveals that child poverty risks among…

Growth of the skull in young children in Baotou, China.

PubMed

Hou, Hai-dong; Liu, Ming; Gong, Ke-rui; Shao, Guo; Zhang, Chun-Yang

2014-09-01

There are some controversies about the optimal time to perform skull repair in very young Chinese children because of the rapid skull growth in this stage of life. The purpose of this current study is to describe the characteristics of skull growth and to discuss the optimal time for skull repair in young Chinese children with skull defects. A total of 112 children born in the First Affiliated Hospital of Baotou Medical College were measured for six consecutive years starting in 2006. Cranial length (CL, linear distance between the eyebrows to the pillow tuberosity), cranial width (CW, double-sided linear distance of connection of external auditory canal), ear over the top line (EOTL), the eyebrows-the posterior tuberosity line (EPTL), and head circumference (HC) were measured to describe the skull growth. The most rapid period of skull growth occurs during the first year of life. The second and third most rapid periods are the second and third years, respectively. Then, the skull growth slowed and the values of the skull growth index of 6-year-old children were close to those of adults. Children 0-1 years old should not receive skull repair due to their rapid skull growth. The indexes of children 3 years old or older were close to those of the adult; therefore, 3 years old or older may receive skull repair.

Socioeconomic characteristics of fathers of children born to teenage mothers in Stockholm, Sweden.

PubMed

Ekéus, Cecilia; Christensson, Kyllike

2003-01-01

Teenage childbearing has been associated with adverse outcomes for the mother and the child. Despite this, no study in Sweden has focused on the fathers of those children. The aim of the present study was to describe and compare the socioeconomic situation of fathers of children born to teenage mothers with those of children born to average-aged mothers. A descriptive comparative study was conducted, which comprised 132 fathers of children born to teenage mothers (Group A) and the same number of fathers of children born to older mothers (Group B). All fathers answered a structured questionnaire regarding socioeconomic and reproductive factors. On certain critical variables the Group A fathers were more likely to have had a more compromised and difficult socioeconomic background. Compared with the Group B fathers they were more likely to have tried illicit drugs and to be involved in criminality. In addition, the Group A fathers often came from single-parent households. Many fathers of children born to teenage mothers showed problem behaviours, which may negatively influence their ability to engage in successful parenting. Therefore increased attention should be paid to the fathers at an early stage of pregnancy, during the antenatal visits.

Environmental Design for Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frank, Mary, Ed.

1977-01-01

The special issue of the journal, Children in Contemporary Society, contains 17 brief articles on environmental design for young handicapped and normal children. Articles have the following titles: "Introduction", "Environmental Design and Architecture", "Why Is Environmental Design Important to Young Children", "Children's Hospital National…

Type I diabetes among children and young adults: the role of country of birth, socioeconomic position and sex.

PubMed

Hussen, Hozan Ismael; Yang, Dong; Cnattingius, Sven; Moradi, Tahereh

2013-03-01

To investigate associations between country of birth, parental country of birth, and education with respect to incidence rate and time trends of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) among children and young adults. We followed a nation-wide cohort of 4 469 671 males and 4 231 680 females aged 0-30 years between 1969 and 2008. Incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for T1DM were calculated using Poisson regression models. We further calculated age-standardized rates (ASRs) of T1DM, using the world population as standard. During the study period, the ASR of T1DM increased among children younger than 15 years, but not among young adults (15-30 years). Compared with Swedish-born children, male and female immigrant children had 44 and 42% lower IRR of TIDM, respectively. Among offspring to immigrants, corresponding decreases in IRRs were 27 and 24%, respectively. Compared with children to parents with high education, male children to parents with low education had a 10% decreased IRR of T1DM, while no effect was observed among females. The IRR of T1DM increased with increasing age and calendar time of follow-up in both sexes (p-for trend <0.0001). In young adults, the IRR among immigrants decreased by 32% in males and 22% in females, while corresponding reductions in IRRs were less in offspring to immigrants. We found a lower IRR of T1DM among offspring to immigrants, but especially among young immigrants compared with Sweden-born individuals. The findings show that environmental factors are important in the etiology of T1DM. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

On the incidence of diarrhoea among young Indian children.

PubMed

Borooah, Vani K

2004-03-01

Diarrhoea, claiming over three million young lives in the world every year, is the second biggest killer of children in developing countries. Using data for over 13,000 children in rural India, under the age of 3 years, this paper examines the relative effects of the different factors--inter alia the quality of the water supply, mother's literacy, housing conditions, and the level of development of the villages in which the children lived--contributing to diarrhoea. The paper highlights the importance of two factors: that children born to undernourished mothers may be more susceptible to infection than children whose mothers are well nourished, and that good hygienic practices within the home, such as washing hands with soap before feeding a child, can reduce the incidence of diarrhoea. The paper also quantifies the relative strength of the factors that determine whether mothers do so. The results emphasize the importance of mothers being literate, of household affluence and of institutional support (through the availability of trained midwives and mother and child centres in villages) in promoting domestic hygiene.

ADHD among young adults born at extremely low birth weight: the role of fluid intelligence in childhood

PubMed Central

Lahat, Ayelet; Van Lieshout, Ryan J.; Saigal, Saroj; Boyle, Michael H.; Schmidt, Louis A.

2014-01-01

Poor executive function (EF) has been linked to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Children born at extremely low birth weight (ELBW; <1000 g) have been found to show both poor EF, as well as elevated levels of symptoms of ADHD. In the present study, we examined whether fluid intelligence moderates the link between birth weight and later ADHD symptoms by prospectively following a cohort of 179 survivors who were born at ELBW. When participants were 8 years-old, they were matched with 145 normal birth weight (NBW; ≥2500 g) control participants. At age 8, fluid intelligence was measured, and during young adulthood (ages 22–26), participants' self-reported levels of ADHD symptoms were examined. We found that ELBW survivors, who also showed poor fluid intelligence, had the highest rates of ADHD symptoms, and particularly, symptoms of inattention. These findings point to the importance of examining developmental trajectories that contribute to risk for psychopathology in those exposed to intrauterine adversity. PMID:24904465

Academic Outcomes for Children Born Preterm: A Summary and Call for Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Keller-Margulis, Milena; Dempsey, Allison; Llorens, Ashlie

2011-01-01

The developmental outcomes for children born preterm have been examined by many, with results unequivocally indicating that children born preterm tend to have poorer cognitive outcomes and more developmental difficulties. Less attention has been paid to academic outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to review the academic skills assessment of…

Trends over time in congenital malformations in live-born children conceived after assisted reproductive technology.

PubMed

Henningsen, Anna-Karina A; Bergh, Christina; Skjaerven, Rolv; Tiitinen, Aila; Wennerholm, Ulla-Britt; Romundstad, Liv B; Gissler, Mika; Opdahl, Signe; Nyboe Andersen, Anders; Lidegaard, Øjvind; Forman, Julie L; Pinborg, Anja

2018-07-01

Children born after assisted reproductive technology, particularly singletons, have been shown to have an increased risk of congenital malformations compared with children born after spontaneous conception. We wished to study whether there has been a change in the past 20 years in the risk of major congenital malformations in children conceived after assisted reproductive technology compared with children spontaneously conceived. Population-based cohort study including 90 201 assisted reproductive technology children and 482 552 children spontaneously conceived, born in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Both singletons and twins born after in vitro fertilization, intracytoplasmatic sperm injection and frozen embryo transfer were included. Data on children were taken from when the national Nordic assisted reproductive technology registries were established until 2007. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to estimate the risks and adjusted odds ratios for congenital malformations in four time periods: 1988-1992, 1993-1997, 1998-2002 and 2003-2007. Only major malformations were included. The absolute risk for singletons of being born with a major malformation was 3.4% among assisted reproductive technology children vs. 2.9% among children spontaneously conceived during the study period. The relative risk of being born with a major congenital malformation between all assisted reproductive technology children and children spontaneously conceived remained similar through all four time periods (p = 0.39). However, we found that over time the number of children diagnosed with a major malformation increased in both groups across all four time periods. When comparing children conceived after assisted reproductive technology and spontaneously conceived, the relative risk of being born with a major congenital malformation did not change during the study period. © 2018 Nordic Federation of Societies of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Brown adipose tissue in young adults who were born preterm or small for gestational age.

PubMed

Kistner, Anna; Rydén, Henric; Anderstam, Björn; Hellström, Ann; Skorpil, Mikael

2018-06-27

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is present and functions to dissipate energy as heat in young adults and can be assessed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to estimate the voxel fat fraction, i.e. proton density fat fraction (PDFF). It is hypothesized that subjects born preterm or small for gestational age (SGA) may exhibit disrupted BAT formation coupled to metabolic factors. Our purpose was to assess the presence of BAT in young adults born extremely preterm or SGA in comparison with controls. We studied 30 healthy subjects (median age, 21 years): 10 born extremely preterm, 10 full term but SGA and 10 full term with a normal birth weight (controls). We utilized an MRI technique combining multiple scans to enable smaller echo spacing and an advanced fat-water separation method applying graph cuts to estimate B0 inhomogeneity. We measured supraclavicular/cervical PDFF, R2*, fat volume, insulin-like growth factor 1, glucagon, thyroid stimulating hormone and the BAT-associated hormones fibroblast growth factor 21 and irisin. The groups did not significantly differ in supraclavicular/cervical PDFF, R2*, fat volume or hormone levels. The mean supraclavicular/cervical PDFF was equivalent between the groups (range 75-77%). Young adults born extremely preterm or SGA show BAT development similar to those born full term at a normal birth weight. Thus, the increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic disorders in these groups is not due to the absence of BAT, although our results do not exclude possible BAT involvement in this scenario. Larger studies are needed to understand these relationships.

The Importance of the Home Literacy Environment for Developing Literacy Skills in Young Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DesJardin, Jean L.; Ambrose, Sophie E.

2010-01-01

Young children who are born deaf or hard of hearing are at risk for language and emergent literacy challenges. Emergent literacy skills play a significant role in early reading abilities for typically developing children with hearing. The purpose of this article is to (a) provide an overview of the research relating to oral language and emerging…

Access to Obstetric Care and Children's Health, Growth and Cognitive Development in Vietnam: Evidence from Young Lives.

PubMed

Lavin, Tina; Preen, David B; Newnham, Elizabeth A

2017-06-01

Background The impact of birth with poor access to skilled obstetric care such as home birth on children's long term development is unknown. This study explores the health, growth and cognitive development of children surviving homebirth in the Vietnam Young Lives sample during early childhood. Methods The Young Lives longitudinal cohort study was conducted in Vietnam with 1812 children born in 2001/2 with follow-up at 1, 5, and 8 years. Data were collected on height/weight, health and cognitive development (Peabody Picture Vocabulary test). Statistical models adjusted for sociodemographic and pregnancy-related factors. Results Children surviving homebirth did not have significantly poorer long-term health, greater stunting after adjusting for sociodemographic/pregnancy-related factors. Rural location, lack of household education, ethnic minority status and lower wealth predicted greater stunting and poorer scores on Peabody Vocabulary test. Conclusions Social disadvantage rather than homebirth influenced children's health, growth and development.

Nutrition and Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frank, Mary, Ed.; And Others

1978-01-01

The special issue of the journal contains 12 articles on nutrition and young children. The following titles and authors are included: "Overview--Nutritional Needs of Young Children" (M. Scialabba); "Nurturance--Mutually Created--Mother and Child" (M. McFarland); "Feeding the Special Needs Child" (E. Croup); "Maternal and Neonatal Nutrition--Long…

Effects of working memory training on children born preterm.

PubMed

Lee, Clara S C; Pei, Jacqueline; Andrew, Gail; A Kerns, Kimberly; Rasmussen, Carmen

2017-01-01

Researchers have reported benefits of working memory training in various populations, however, the training gains in preterm population is still inadequately studied. This study aimed to investigate the transfer and lasting effects of an online working memory training program on a group of preterm children aged between 4 and 6 years (mean gestational age = 28.3 weeks; mean birth weight = 1153 grams). Children were asked to perform the Cogmed JM at home for approximately 15 minutes a day, 5 days a week for 5 weeks. Their nontrained working memory and attention were assessed pre-training, post-training, and at 5-week follow-up. Parent ratings on children's executive functions were obtained at the three time points. Results revealed that significant improvements in verbal working memory was emerging in preterm children at 5-week follow-up, while significant gains in visuospatial working memory was found post-training and at 5-week follow-up in age-matched term-born children. These results indicated that working memory training has benefits on preterm children; however, the gains are different from those observed in term-born children. No significant differences in attention and parent-rated EF were found in either group across time. The possible explanations for the training benefits observed in preterm children were discussed.

Mortality throughout early childhood for Michigan children born with congenital anomalies, 1992-1998.

PubMed

Berger, Katherine H; Zhu, Bao-Ping; Copeland, Glenn

2003-09-01

Congenital anomalies are a leading cause of infant deaths, accounting for almost a fifth of all infant deaths. Few studies have researched the survival experience of infants born with congenital anomalies past the infant stage. Using birth and death files routinely linked to the Michigan Birth Defects Registry, we identified all singleton infants during calendar years 1992 through 1998 with reportable congenital anomalies for our study. A comparative file of children born without congenital anomalies during the same time period was developed using linked birth and death files. The mortality data were assessed by age at death (through age six) and race to determine mortality rates, relative risks, hazard ratios, and survival trends. Throughout early childhood, children born with congenital anomalies had a high risk of mortality compared with all other children. The overall 7-year hazard ratio comparing children with congenital anomalies with all other children was 7.2. Overall mortality rates for black children were significantly higher than white children through the age of seven, irrespective of whether they had congenital anomalies. Among children with congenital anomalies, this disparity disappeared after adjusting for birth weight, sex, mother's age, mother's education, and number of organ systems affected. Compared with children without congenital anomalies, children born with congenital anomalies had a higher risk of mortality well beyond the infant period. Racial disparities in mortality rates among children with congenital anomalies were due to confounding factors.

Differences in uptake of immunisations and health examinations among refugee children compared to Danish-born children: a cohort study.

PubMed

Moller, Sanne Pagh; Hjern, Anders; Andersen, Anne-Marie Nybo; Norredam, Marie

2016-04-01

Refugee children and their families constitute a vulnerable group regarding health and access to care. In a register-based cohort design, we examined differences in uptake of immunisations and child health examinations between refugee children and Danish-born children, including predictors of uptake among refugee children. Refugee children (n = 16,701) who, between January 1993 and December 2010, obtained residency permits in Denmark were included and matched in a 1:6 ratio on age and sex with Danish-born children (n = 100,206). Personal identification numbers were cross-linked to the National Danish Health Service Register, identifying all contacts for immunisation and child health examinations. We estimated hazard ratios (HR) of uptake. Refugee children had a lower uptake of all immunisations compared to Danish-born children. The lowest uptake was found for immunisation against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis and polio (HR = 0.50; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.48-0.51). Participation in child health examinations was also lower among refugee children with the lowest at the last child health examination at age 5 (HR = 0.48; 95 % CI 0.47-0.50). Adjusting the analysis for parental income increased the HRs by 10-20 %. This Danish register-based study using nationwide data revealed a lower uptake of routine immunisations and child health examinations among refugee children compared to Danish-born children. •Uptake of immunisation and child health examination is associated with low household income, unemployment and low educational status among the parents. •Uptake may be even lower among refugee families as they constitute a vulnerable group regarding access to healthcare. What is New: •Refugee children had lower uptake of immunisations and child health examinations compared to Danish-born children. •Several predictors of uptake were identified including region of origin and duration of residence.

High prevalence/low severity language delay in preschool children born very preterm.

PubMed

Foster-Cohen, Susan H; Friesen, Myron D; Champion, Patricia R; Woodward, Lianne J

2010-10-01

To examine the language development at corrected age 4 years of a regionally representative cohort of children born very preterm (VPT). Of particular interest was the identification of biological and socioenvironmental risk and protective factors that influence VPT children's early language development. Data were collected as part of a prospective longitudinal study of 110 VPT (VPT: ≤ 33 weeks gestation) and 113 full-term children (full term: 37-41 weeks gestation) born in Canterbury, New Zealand from 1998 to 2000. At corrected age 4 years, all children were assessed with the preschool version of the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals. Extensive information was also collected about children's family social background, perinatal health, childrearing environment, education/intervention exposures, and neurodevelopmental progress from birth to age 4. At the age of 4 years, VPT children were characterized by poorer receptive and expressive language development than full-term children. These differences persisted after exclusion of children with neurosensory impairment as well as statistical adjustment for the effects of social risk. Within the VPT group, the key predictors of children's overall language development were family social risk at birth (p =.05), severity of white matter abnormalities on neonatal magnetic resonance imaging (p =.49), observed parent-child synchrony (p =.001), and concurrent child cognitive ability (p =.001). Together, these factors accounted for 45% of the variance in children's total Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool scores. By preschool age, children born VPT show early emerging mild to moderate language delays that are likely to affect their school success and longer-term developmental progress. Findings highlight the importance of potentially modifiable factors such as early brain injury and parenting quality in predicting the language outcomes of children born VPT.

[A survey of pubertal development in children born with assisted reproductive technology].

PubMed

Liu, Zi-Yuan; Wang, Xin-Li; Han, Tong-Yan; Cui, Yun-Pu; Wang, Xue-Mei; Tong, Xiao-Mei; Song, Yi; Wang, Hai-Jun; Li, Song

2017-06-01

To investigate the status of pubertal development in children born with assisted reproductive technology (ART). A retrospective analysis was performed on the pubertal development data of children born with ART in Peking University Third Hospital from 1994 to 2003 (ART group). The data in the cross-sectional study "Reports on the Physical Fitness and Health Research of Chinese School Students in 2010" were used as a control. The age at menarche and the age at spermarche were compared between the two groups. The status of pubertal development in the overweight and obese children in the ART group was evaluated to investigate the correlation between pubertal development and body mass index (BMI). A total of 200 children born with ART were enrolled in this study, and 72 of them (41 males and 31 females) completed the survey (response rate=36.0%). In the ART group, the mean age at spermarche and the mean age at menarche were 13.9 years (95%CI: 13.7-14.3 years) and 12.2 years (95%CI: 11.8-12.6 years), respectively. There were no significant differences in the age at spermarche and the age at menarche between the ART and control groups (P>0.05). In the ART group, there were no significant differences in the age at spermarche and the age at menarche between the overweight and obese children and the normal weight children (P>0.05). There were also no significant differences in overweight rate and obesity rate between the children in the ART group and the adolescents in Beijing (P>0.05). In the ART group, there was no significant correlation between the age at spermarche or menarche and BMI (P>0.05). No delayed or precocious puberty is observed in children born with ART. This is consistent with the normal control data. And there is no significant correlation between pubertal development and BMI in children born with ART.

Resting-State Oscillatory Activity in Children Born Small for Gestational Age: An MEG Study

PubMed Central

Boersma, Maria; de Bie, Henrica M. A.; Oostrom, Kim J.; van Dijk, Bob W.; Hillebrand, Arjan; van Wijk, Bernadette C. M.; Delemarre-van de Waal, Henriëtte A.; Stam, Cornelis J.

2013-01-01

Growth restriction in utero during a period that is critical for normal growth of the brain, has previously been associated with deviations in cognitive abilities and brain anatomical and functional changes. We measured magnetoencephalography (MEG) in 4- to 7-year-old children to test if children born small for gestational age (SGA) show deviations in resting-state brain oscillatory activity. Children born SGA with postnatally spontaneous catch-up growth [SGA+; six boys, seven girls; mean age 6.3 year (SD = 0.9)] and children born appropriate for gestational age [AGA; seven boys, three girls; mean age 6.0 year (SD = 1.2)] participated in a resting-state MEG study. We calculated absolute and relative power spectra and used non-parametric statistics to test for group differences. SGA+ and AGA born children showed no significant differences in absolute and relative power except for reduced absolute gamma band power in SGA children. At the time of MEG investigation, SGA+ children showed significantly lower head circumference (HC) and a trend toward lower IQ, however there was no association of HC or IQ with absolute or relative power. Except for reduced absolute gamma band power, our findings suggest normal brain activity patterns at school age in a group of children born SGA in which spontaneous catch-up growth of bodily length after birth occurred. Although previous findings suggest that being born SGA alters brain oscillatory activity early in neonatal life, we show that these neonatal alterations do not persist at early school age when spontaneous postnatal catch-up growth occurs after birth. PMID:24068993

Cognitive, motor, behavioural and academic performances of children born preterm: a meta-analysis and systematic review involving 64 061 children.

PubMed

Allotey, J; Zamora, J; Cheong-See, F; Kalidindi, M; Arroyo-Manzano, D; Asztalos, E; van der Post, Jam; Mol, B W; Moore, D; Birtles, D; Khan, K S; Thangaratinam, S

2018-01-01

Preterm birth may leave the brain vulnerable to dysfunction. Knowledge of future neurodevelopmental delay in children born with various degrees of prematurity is needed to inform practice and policy. To quantify the long-term cognitive, motor, behavioural and academic performance of children born with different degrees of prematurity compared with term-born children. PubMed and Embase were searched from January 1980 to December 2016 without language restrictions. Observational studies that reported neurodevelopmental outcomes from 2 years of age in children born preterm compared with a term-born cohort. We pooled individual estimates of standardised mean differences (SMD) and odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals using a random effects model. We included 74 studies (64 061 children). Preterm children had lower cognitive scores for FSIQ (SMD: -0.70; 95% CI: -0.73 to -0.66), PIQ (SMD: -0.67; 95% CI: -0.73 to -0.60) and VIQ (SMD: -0.53; 95% CI: -0.60 to -0.47). Lower scores for preterm children in motor skills, behaviour, reading, mathematics and spelling were observed at primary school age, and this persisted to secondary school age, except for mathematics. Gestational age at birth accounted for 38-48% of the observed IQ variance. ADHD was diagnosed twice as often in preterm children (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.3-1.8), with a differential effect observed according to the severity of prematurity (I 2 = 49.4%, P = 0.03). Prematurity of any degree affects the cognitive performance of children born preterm. The poor neurodevelopment persists at various ages of follow up. Parents, educators, healthcare professionals and policy makers need to take into account the additional academic, emotional and behavioural needs of these children. Adverse effect of preterm birth on a child's neurodevelopment persists up to adulthood. © 2017 Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Young Children's Understanding of Denial

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Austin, Keith; Theakston, Anna; Lieven, Elena; Tomasello, Michael

2014-01-01

Although a fair amount is known about young children's production of negation, little is known about their comprehension. Here, we focus on arguably the most complex basic form, denial, and how young children understand denial, when it is expressed in response to a question with gesture, single word, or sentence. One hundred twenty-six children in…

Educational attainment of children born to mothers with epilepsy.

PubMed

Lacey, Arron S; Pickrell, William Owen; Thomas, Rhys H; Kerr, Mike P; White, Cathy P; Rees, Mark I

2018-03-27

Small prospective studies have identified that children exposed to valproate in utero have poorer scores on cognitive testing. We wanted to identify whether children exposed to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in utero have poorer school performance. We used anonymised, linked, routinely collected healthcare records to identify children born to mothers with epilepsy. We linked these children to their national attainment Key Stage 1 (KS1) tests in mathematics, language and science at the age of 7 and compared them with matched children born to mothers without epilepsy, and with the national KS1 results. We used the core subject indicator (CSI) as an outcome measure (the proportion of children achieving a minimum standard in all subjects) and the results in individual subjects. We identified 440 children born to mothers with epilepsy with available KS1 results. Compared with a matched control group, fewer children with mothers being prescribed sodium valproate during pregnancy achieved the national minimum standard in CSI (-12.7% less than the control group), mathematics (-12.1%), language (-10.4%) and in science (-12.2%). Even fewer children with mothers being prescribed multiple AEDs during pregnancy achieved a national minimum standard: CSI (by -20.7% less than the control group), mathematics (-21.9%), language (-19.3%) and science (-19.4%). We did not observe any significant difference in children whose mothers were prescribed carbamazepine or were not taking an AED when compared with the control group. In utero exposure to AEDs in combination, or sodium valproate alone, is associated with a significant decrease in attainment in national educational tests for 7-year-old children compared with both a matched control group and the all-Wales national average. These results give further support to the cognitive and developmental effects of in utero exposure to sodium valproate as well as multiple AEDs, which should be balanced against the need for effective seizure control

Low vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected women in Niamey, Niger.

PubMed

Tchidjou, Hyppolite Kuekou; Vescio, Maria Fenicia; Sanou Sobze, Martin; Souleyman, Animata; Stefanelli, Paola; Mbabia, Adalbert; Moussa, Ide; Gentile, Bruno; Colizzi, Vittorio; Rezza, Giovanni

2016-01-01

The effect of mother's HIV-status on child vaccination is an important public health issue in countries with high HIV prevalence. We conducted a study in a primary healthcare center located in Niamey, the capital of Niger, which offers free of charge services to HIV positive and/or underprivileged mothers, with the aim of assessing: 1) vaccination coverage for children 0-36 months old, born to HIV-infected mothers, and 2) the impact of maternal HIV status on child vaccination. Mothers of children less than 36 months old attending the center were interviewed, to collect information on vaccines administered to their child, and family's socio-demographic characteristics. Overall, 502 children were investigated. Children of HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to receive follow up vaccinations for Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTP) than those of HIV-seronegative mothers, with a prevalence ratio (PR) of 2.03 (95%CI: 1.58-2.61). Children born to HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to miss vaccination for MMR than those born to HIV negative mothers, with a RR of 0.46 (95%CI: 0.30-0.72). Vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected mothers was rather low. It is important to favor access to vaccination programs in this population.

[Evaluation of language at 6 years in children born prematurely without cerebral palsy: prospective study of 55 children].

PubMed

Charollais, A; Stumpf, M-H; Beaugrand, D; Lemarchand, M; Radi, S; Pasquet, F; Khomsi, A; Marret, S

2010-10-01

Very premature birth carries a high risk of neurocognitive disabilities and learning disorders. Acquiring sufficient speech skills is crucial to good school performance. A prospective study was conducted in 2006 to evaluate speech development in 55 children born very prematurely in 2000 at the Rouen Teaching Hospital (Rouen, France), free of cerebral palsy, compared to 6-year-old born at full term. A computerized speech assessment tool was used (Bilan Informatisé du Langage Oral, BILO II). In the premature-birth group, 49 % of 6-year-old had at least 1 score below the 25th percentile on 1 of the 8 BILO II tests. Significant speech impairments were noted for 2 components of speech, namely, comprehension and phonology. Oral comprehension scores no higher than the 10th percentile were obtained by 23 % of prematurely born children (P<0.02 vs controls). On word repetition tasks used to test phonology, 21 % of prematurely born children obtained scores no higher than the 10th percentile (P<0.01 vs controls). An evaluation of sensorimotor language prerequisites (constraints) in 30 of the 55 prematurely born children showed significant differences with the controls for word memory, visual attention, and buccofacial praxis. The speech development impairments found in 6-year-old born very prematurely suggest a distinctive pattern of neurodevelopmental dysfunction that is consistent with the motor theory of speech perception. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Priorities for children and young people - opportunities and challenges for children and young people's nurses.

PubMed

Smith, Fiona

2016-05-09

Across Europe children's nurses today face many challenges, including rising childhood obesity, the soaring incidence of issues with the mental health of children and young people, the effects of social media, child maltreatment and the impact of poverty, war and conflict on children and families. There are opportunities for children's nurses to undertake new roles and to influence both policy and practice to improve the health outcomes of children and young people, and thereby the future health of the population.

Hospitalizations of Infants and Young Children with Down Syndrome: Evidence from Inpatient Person-Records from a Statewide Administrative Database

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

So, S. A.; Urbano, R. C.; Hodapp, R. M.

2007-01-01

Background: Although individuals with Down syndrome are increasingly living into the adult years, infants and young children with the syndrome continue to be at increased risk for health problems. Using linked, statewide administrative hospital discharge records of all infants with Down syndrome born over a 3-year period, this study "follows…

Young children's harmonic perception.

PubMed

Costa-Giomi, Eugenia

2003-11-01

Harmony and tonality are two of the most difficult elements for young children to perceive and manipulate and are seldom taught in the schools until the end of early childhood. Children's gradual harmonic and tonal development has been attributed to their cumulative exposure to Western tonal music and their increasing experiential knowledge of its rules and principles. Two questions that are relevant to this problem are: (1) Can focused and systematic teaching accelerate the learning of the harmonic/tonal principles that seem to occur in an implicit way throughout childhood? (2) Are there cognitive constraints that make it difficult for young children to perceive and/or manipulate certain harmonic and tonal principles? A series of studies specifically addressed the first question and suggested some possible answers to the second one. Results showed that harmonic instruction has limited effects on children's perception of harmony and indicated that the drastic improvement in the perception of implied harmony noted approximately at age 9 is due to development rather than instruction. I propose that young children's difficulty in perceiving implied harmony stems from their attention behaviors. Older children have less memory constraints and more strategies to direct their attention to the relevant cues of the stimulus. Younger children focus their attention on the melody, if present in the stimulus, and specifically on its concrete elements such as rhythm, pitch, and contour rather than its abstract elements such as harmony and key. The inference of the abstract harmonic organization of a melody required in the perception of implied harmony is thus an elusive task for the young child.

The Developmental Outcome of Children Born to Heroin-Dependent Mothers, Raised at Home or Adopted.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ornoy, Asher; And Others

1996-01-01

Children born to heroin-dependent mothers (n=83) were compared to 76 children born to heroin-dependent fathers and to 3 control groups with and without environmental deprivation and health problems. Results found that developmental delays and behavioral disorders found among heroin-exposed children resulted primarily from severe environmental…

Do children born to teenage parents have lower adult intelligence? A prospective birth cohort study.

PubMed

Khatun, Mohsina; Al Mamun, Abdullah; Scott, James; William, Gail M; Clavarino, Alexandra; Najman, Jake M

2017-01-01

Teenage motherhood has been associated with a wide variety of negative offspring outcomes including poorer cognitive development. In the context of limitations of previous research, this paper assesses the contemporary relevance of this finding. In this study we investigate the long-term cognitive status (IQ) among 21 year adult offspring born to teenage parents using the Mater University Study of Pregnancy- a prospective birth cohort study, which recruited all pregnant mothers attending a large obstetrical hospital in Brisbane, Australia, from 1981 to 1983. The analyses were restricted to a sub-sample of 2643 mother-offspring pair. Offspring IQ was measured using the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test at 21 year. Parental age was reported at first clinic visit. Offspring born to teenage mothers (<20 years) have -3.0 (95% Confidence Interval (CI): -4.3, -1.8) points lower IQ compared to children born to mothers ≥20 years and were more likely to have a low IQ (Odds Ratio (OR) 1.7; 95% CI: 1.3, 2.3). Adjustment for a range of confounding and mediating factors including parental socioeconomic status, maternal IQ, maternal smoking and binge drinking in pregnancy, birthweight, breastfeeding and parenting style attenuates the association, though the effect remains statistically significant (-1.4 IQ points; 95% CI: -2.8,-0.1). Similarly the risk of offspring having low IQ remained marginally significantly higher in those born to teenage mothers (OR 1.3; 95% CI: 1.0, 1.9). In contrast, teenage fatherhood is not associated with adult offspring IQ, when adjusted for maternal age. Although the reduction in IQ is quantitatively small, it is indicative of neurodevelopmental disadvantage experienced by the young adult offspring of teenage mothers. Our results suggest that public policy initiatives should be targeted not only at delaying childbearing in the population but also at supporting early life condition of children born to teenage mothers to minimize the risk for

Memory functions of children born with asymmetric intrauterine growth restriction.

PubMed

Geva, Ronny; Eshel, Rina; Leitner, Yael; Fattal-Valevski, Aviva; Harel, Shaul

2006-10-30

Learning difficulties are frequently diagnosed in children born with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Models of various animal species with IUGR were studied and demonstrated specific susceptibility and alterations of the hippocampal formation and its related neural structures. The main purpose was to study memory functions of children born with asymmetric IUGR in a large-scale cohort using a long-term prospective paradigm. One hundred and ten infants diagnosed with IUGR were followed-up from birth to 9 years of age. Their performance was compared with a group of 63 children with comparable gestational age and multiple socioeconomic factors. Memory functions (short-term, super- and long-term spans) for different stimuli types (verbal and visual) were evaluated using Visual Auditory Digit Span tasks (VADS), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (Rey-AVLT), and Rey Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (ROCF). Children with IUGR had short-term memory difficulties that hindered both serial verbal processing system and simultaneous processing of high-load visuo-spatial stimuli. The difficulties were not related to prematurity, neonatal complications or growth catch-up, but were augmented by lower maternal education. Recognition skills and benefits from reiteration, typically affected by hippocampal dysfunction, were preserved in both groups. Memory profile of children born with IUGR is characterized primarily by a short-term memory deficit that does not necessarily comply with a typical hippocampal deficit, but rather may reflect an executive short-term memory deficit characteristic of anterior hippocampal-prefrontal network. Implications for cognitive intervention are discussed.

[Behavioral characteristics of the only child vs first-born and children with siblings].

PubMed

Tavares, Marcelo B; Fuchs, Felipe Costa; Diligenti, Felipe; de Abreu, José Ricardo Pinto; Rohde, Luis Augusto; Fuchs, Sandra Costa

2004-03-01

To assess the impact of being an only child on characteristics of parental and peer relationships, school achievement, social and sexual behavior. In the total, 360 adolescents identified at third year of high school were sampled from a private school from Porto Alegre in 2000 and 2001. Fifteen to nineteen years old male and female were selected in a cross-sectional study. Assessment of demographic data, education of the parents, birth order (only child, first born and non-first born children), cigarette smoking, alcoholic beverages consumption, illicit drug use, school achievement, social and sexual behavior were gathered with a pre-tested self-administered questionnaire, anonymously fulfilled at the classroom. This study encompassed 8% of only children, 35% first-born, and 57% non-first born adolescents of a socioeconomic homogeneous sample. Social behavior, parents and peer relationships, sports participation, smoking and illicit drug were not associated with birth order. Only children were less likely to report an episode of alcohol intoxication (39%) than first-born (68.9%; p=0.03) and adolescents with siblings (72.3%; p<0.001). Only children had high school achievement than adolescents with siblings (p=0.03). Sexual behavior distinguished only children due to younger age at first sexual intercourse and lower rate of heterosexual self-identification, which persisted even after adjustment for confounding variables in comparison with non first-born adolescents (p=0.038). Our findings suggest that the status of being only child is not associated with a poor outcome in several areas of the development. The impact of the presence of siblings in the development of sexual identification should be further explored.

White matter properties associated with pre-reading skills in 6-year-old children born preterm and at term.

PubMed

Dodson, Cory K; Travis, Katherine E; Borchers, Lauren R; Marchman, Virginia A; Ben-Shachar, Michal; Feldman, Heidi M

2018-05-03

To assess associations between white matter properties and pre-reading skills (phonological awareness and receptive and expressive language) in children born preterm and at term at the onset of reading acquisition. Six-year-old children born preterm (n=36; gestational age 22-32wks) and at term (n=43) underwent diffusion magnetic resonance imaging and behavioural assessments. Tracts were selected a priori based on findings from a study of 6-year-old children born at term: the left-hemisphere arcuate fasciculus and superior longitudinal fasciculus, and right-hemisphere uncinate fasciculus. Using linear regression, we assessed associations between fractional anisotropy of tracts and phonological awareness and receptive and expressive language scores. We investigated whether associations were moderated by prematurity. Fractional anisotropy of the left-hemisphere arcuate fasciculus contributed unique variance to phonological awareness across birth groups. The association between fractional anisotropy of the right-hemisphere uncinate fasciculus and receptive and expressive language was significantly moderated by prematurity. A left-hemisphere tract was associated with phonological awareness in both birth groups. A right-hemisphere tract was associated with language only in the term group, suggesting that expressive and receptive language is mediated by different white matter pathways in 6-year-old children born preterm. These findings provide novel insights into similarities and differences of the neurobiology of pre-reading skills between children born preterm and at term at reading onset. White matter properties and pre-reading abilities were associated in children born preterm at the onset of reading. The neurobiology of phonological awareness was similar in children born preterm versus children born at term at 6 years. The neurobiology of language was different in children born preterm versus children born at term at 6 years. © 2018 Mac Keith Press.

Cognitive outcomes in school-age children born prematurely.

PubMed

Davis, Deborah Winders

2003-01-01

The purpose of this article is to discuss findings in the literature regarding long-term developmental outcomes of infants born prematurely, to examine potential causes of individual differences in these outcomes, and to explore directions for future research. An extensive table summarizes recent (1996-2002) international studies of developmental outcomes among children of school age and older who were born with low birth weight, especially as the studies relate to cognitive development and academic performance. The discussion then examines how characteristics of the child and the environment may interact to produce individual differences in outcomes. Processes of attention regulation within the context of the psychosocial environment are examined as an important possible direction for future research. When designing and implementing interventions aimed at improving outcomes in this and other groups of children at risk for delays and deficits, it is important to consider how various factors affect development.

Low vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected women in Niamey, Niger

PubMed Central

Tchidjou, Hyppolite Kuekou; Vescio, Maria Fenicia; Sanou Sobze, Martin; Souleyman, Animata; Stefanelli, Paola; Mbabia, Adalbert; Moussa, Ide; Gentile, Bruno; Colizzi, Vittorio; Rezza, Giovanni

2016-01-01

Background: The effect of mother’s HIV-status on child vaccination is an important public health issue in countries with high HIV prevalence. We conducted a study in a primary healthcare center located in Niamey, the capital of Niger, which offers free of charge services to HIV positive and/or underprivileged mothers, with the aim of assessing: 1) vaccination coverage for children 0–36 months old, born to HIV-infected mothers, and 2) the impact of maternal HIV status on child vaccination. Methods: Mothers of children less than 36 months old attending the center were interviewed, to collect information on vaccines administered to their child, and family’s socio-demographic characteristics. Results: Overall, 502 children were investigated. Children of HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to receive follow up vaccinations for Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis (DTP) than those of HIV-seronegative mothers, with a prevalence ratio (PR) of 2.03 (95%CI: 1.58–2.61). Children born to HIV-seropositive mothers were less likely to miss vaccination for MMR than those born to HIV negative mothers, with a RR of 0.46 (95%CI: 0.30–0.72). Conclusions: Vaccine coverage among children born to HIV infected mothers was rather low. It is important to favor access to vaccination programs in this population. PMID:26237156

Open bite in prematurely born children.

PubMed

Harila, V; Heikkinen, T; Grön, M; Alvesalo, L

2007-01-01

The aims of this study were to: examine the expression of open bite in prematurely born children and discuss the etiological factors that may lead to bite it. The subjects were 328 prematurely born (<37 gestational weeks) Caucasoid and African American children and 1,804 full-term control children, who participated in the cross-sectional study of the Collaborative Perinatal Project in the 1960s and 1970s. Dental documents, including casts and photographs, were taken once at the age of 6-12 years in the mixed dentition. The occlusion was recorded by examining and measuring the hard stone casts. Vertical open bite was recorded only for full erupted teeth. The statistical method used was chi-square analysis. Significant differences in the incidence of anterior open bite (from left to right canine) was found between the preterm and control groups and between gender and ethnic groups. The prevalence of anterior open bite was nearly 9% in the preterm group and almost 7% in the control group. African Americans (9%) had a significantly greater incidence of open bite than Caucasians (3%; P<.0001). Generally, girls had a greater incidence of open bite than boys (8% vs 6%; P<.11). When the study groups were divided by prematurity, gender, and ethnic group, the prevalence of open bite was increased--especially in preterm African American boys compared to controls (11% vs 8%). The results show differences in the development of anterior open bite between ethnic and gender groups. Premature birth may also influence dental occlusal development. Of importance are the patient's: general health condition; respiratory infections; inadequate nasal- and mouth-breathing; oral habits; and other medical problems. Preterm children may be relatively more predisposed to etiological factors for the development of anterior open bite.

Effectiveness of rotavirus vaccine in preventing severe gastroenteritis in young children according to socioeconomic status

PubMed Central

Gosselin, Virginie; Généreux, Mélissa; Gagneur, Arnaud; Petit, Geneviève

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT In 2011, the monovalent rotavirus vaccine was introduced into a universal immunization program in Quebec (Canada). This retrospective cohort study assessed vaccine effectiveness (VE) in preventing acute gastroenteritis (AGE) and rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) hospitalizations among children <3 y living in the Quebec Eastern Townships region according to socioeconomic status (SES). Data were gathered from a tertiary hospital database paired with a regional immunization registry. Three cohorts of children were followed: (1) vaccinated children born in post-universal vaccination period (2011–2013, n = 5,033), (2) unvaccinated children born in post-universal vaccination period (n = 1,239), and (3) unvaccinated children born in pre-universal vaccination period (2008–2010, n = 6,436). In each cohort, AGE and RVGE hospitalizations were identified during equivalent follow-up periods to calculate VE globally and according to neighborhood-level SES. Using multivariable logistic regression, adjusted odds ratios (OR) were computed to obtain VE (1-OR). Adjusted VE of 2 doses was 62% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 37%–77%) and 94% (95%CI: 52%–99%) in preventing AGE and RVGE hospitalization, respectively. Stratified analyses according to SES showed that children living in neighborhoods with higher rates of low-income families had significantly lower VE against AGE hospitalizations compared to neighborhoods with lower rates of low-income families (30% vs. 78%, p = 0.027). Our results suggest that the rotavirus vaccine is highly effective in preventing severe gastroenteritis in young children, particularly among the most well-off. SES seems to influence rotavirus VE, even in a high-income country like Canada. Further studies are needed to determine factors related to lower rotavirus VE among socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. PMID:27367155

Quality of Life of Adolescents and Young Adults Born at High Risk

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dahan-Oliel, Noemi; Majnemer, Annette; Mazer, Barbara

2011-01-01

Research on quality of life (QoL) of adolescents and young adults born preterm and those with congenital heart disease (CHD) was systematically reviewed, and factors associated with QoL were identified. Forty-five studies met the inclusion criteria for review. Although the majority of studies found that self-reported QoL of adolescents and young…

Decomposing the Household Food Insecurity Gap for Children of U.S.-Born and Foreign-Born Hispanics: Evidence from 1998 to 2011.

PubMed

Arteaga, Irma; Potochnick, Stephanie; Parsons, Sarah

2017-10-01

Using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-K, multivariate analysis, state fixed effects, and regression decomposition, we examine changes in food insecurity for Hispanic kindergarteners between 1998 and 2011, a time period of rapid immigration and political/socio-economic changes. During this time the household food insecurity gap between children of U.S.-born and foreign-born mothers increased by almost 7 percentage points. The factors-child, family, and state-that contributed to the nativity gap differed over time. In both periods, lower familial resources among immigrant families, i.e. endowment effects, contributed to the gap; this was the main component of the gap in 2011 but only one component in 1998. In 1998, heterogeneity in state effects was positively associated with the nativity food insecurity gap. This means that children of foreign-born mothers experience higher household food insecurity than do children of U.S.-born mothers in the same state, even after controlling for child and family characteristics. In 2011, almost half of the gap remained unexplained. This unexplained portion could be driven by differential effects of the Great Recession, growing anti-immigrant sentiment, and/or the relatively large share of unauthorized immigrants in 2011.

Discovering Nature with Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chalufour, Ingrid; Worth, Karen

Young children's curiosity about nature and their need to make sense of the world presents an opportunity to incorporate science as a natural and critical part of children's early learning. This guide, part of a preschool science curriculum, uses an inquiry approach to encourage young naturalists to observe life more closely, build an…

The growth and development of children born to adolescent mothers in Taiwan.

PubMed

Wu, Wei-Ya; Li, Chi-Rong; Kuo, Ching-Pyng; Chiang, Yi-Chen; Lee, Meng-Chih

2016-08-31

Adolescent pregnancy carries a higher risk of adverse birth outcomes. Currently, there are very few longitudinal studies that have investigated the growth of children born to adolescents. This study explores the birth outcomes and determinants in adolescent pregnancies with subjects enrolled from the Taiwan Birth Cohort Study (TBCS). Using the data of Wave I (6 months old), II (18 months old), and III (36 months old) of TBCS, a national sample of 19,381 pairs of mothers and their children were included for analysis. Out of these subjects, therewere560 pairs of adolescent mothers and children. Through completed field interviews with structured questionnaires, surveys with mothers or other family members, and with references to each child's birth certificate and Passport of Well-baby Care, the differences in birth outcomes, personal, pregnancy, and social profiles of the mothers were analyzed. A total of 560 adolescent mothers (<20 years old) and 18,821 adult mothers (20-34 years old) were included in this study. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of parameters of children growth and development. The numbers (proportions) of failure in milestones at 3 years old in gross motor functions, fine motor function, language, and social/personal development of children born to adolescent mothers are 13(2.32), 34(6.07), 10(1.79), and 24(4.29 %), respectively; while there are 392(2.08), 1015(5.39), 308(1.64) and 512(2.72 %) for those born to adult mothers, respectively. The risk factors of failure in children development were identified as "the mother isn't the night-time caregiver" and "family dysfunction". There was no significant difference in development at 3 years old among children born to adolescent and adult mothers.

[Young women with HIV infection acquired by vertical transmission: Expectations of having uninfected children].

PubMed

Villarroel, Julia; Álvarez, Ana M; Salvador, Francisco; Chávez, Ana; Wu, Elba; Contardo, Verónica

2016-12-01

Pediatric antiretroviral therapy (ART), changed the prognosis of the disease, allowing young women infected by vertical transmission (TV) to be pregnant without risk for their fetus of acquiring this infection. To describe the clinical-immune status in pregnant women that acquired HV by vertical transmission, treatments received, monitoring of pregnancy and newborn characteristics. A protocol was performed, evaluating clinical and immunological parameters during pregnancy, ART used, protocol preventing vertical transmission (PPTV), and follow up of children to 18 months of age. Of 358 HIV-positive patients vertically infected, five women became pregnant, between 14 and 24 years old. Pregnancies were controlled in clinical/immune-stage N2 C3. They had received two to five therapies. Full PPTV was performed in all binomials. Pre-natal undetectable viral loads ranged from 4,700 ARN copies/mL. Five living children were born by Caesarean section, four of them with 37 weeks of completed gestation and one of them with 34 weeks of gestation. All received zidovudine (AZT) for 6 weeks. CD4 at 72 hours of life ranged from 48% to 74.6%. All children were born uninfected with HIV. Only two had mild anemia. Expectations of HIV mothers vertically infected to have healthy children are similar to those infected by horizontal transmission, using PPTV.

Young Children and Families Experiencing Homelessness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilson, Allison B.; Squires, Jane

2014-01-01

The increasing prevalence of homelessness among young children and families in the United States is described, as is the developmental impact on young children and cost to society. Although services are mandated for this population under the McKinney­-Vento Act, Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program, and the Individuals With…

Mothers' Perceptions of Young Children, Parenting, and Young Children's Behavior Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Renk, Kimberly

2011-01-01

Historically, research demonstrates that mothers' attitudes and characteristics of their parenting are intertwined. More recently, mothers' perceptions of their children are becoming a new focus of interest. To further understand the relationships among mothers' perceptions of their young children, their parenting behaviors, and their ratings of…

Do chronic conditions increase young children's risk of being maltreated?

PubMed

Jaudes, Paula Kienberger; Mackey-Bilaver, Lucy

2008-07-01

To examine whether and to what extent specific chronic health conditions place young children at risk of maltreatment. The study used a sample of Illinois children (born between January 1990 and March 1996) who were through age 3 continuously enrolled in Medicaid, a public health insurance program for low-income families. The study used "paid claims" data and ICD-9-CM health codes to identify children with one or more of three chronic conditions: chronic physical illness, developmental delay/mental retardation (dd/mr), and behavior/mental health conditions (b/mh). The analysis used Cox proportional hazard models to estimate the risk of substantiated child maltreatment that each of these health conditions confer on children under age 6. Among children under age 6, 24.1% had chronic physical health conditions, 6.1% had b/mh conditions, and 4.2% had dd/mr. Among the children, 11.7% were maltreated (abused or neglected). Children with b/mh conditions were 1.95 times more likely than children without such conditions to be victims of child abuse or neglect. Children with chronic physical health conditions were 1.1 time more likely to be maltreated (pchildren with dd/mr were not at an increased risk of maltreatment. Further, if the child had a prior history of abuse or neglect before age 3 and was also diagnosed with a behavioral health condition, that child was 10 times more likely to be maltreated again (relative risk of 9.2, pchildren under age 6 at the highest risk of abuse or neglect. Developmental delay/mental retardation, however, did not appear to increase the risk of maltreatment, while chronic physical health conditions increased the risk slightly among this group of children. Therefore, identified behavior/mental health in young, low-income children should be considered a risk factor for potential abuse to pediatricians and other health professionals. Child protection

Reduced corticomotor excitability and motor skills development in children born preterm

PubMed Central

Pitcher, Julia B; Schneider, Luke A; Burns, Nicholas R; Drysdale, John L; Higgins, Ryan D; Ridding, Michael C; Nettelbeck, Theodore J; Haslam, Ross R; Robinson, Jeffrey S

2012-01-01

The mechanisms underlying the altered neurodevelopment commonly experienced by children born preterm, but without brain lesions, remain unknown. While individuals born the earliest are at most risk, late preterm children also experience significant motor, cognitive and behavioural dysfunction from school age, and reduced income and educational attainment in adulthood. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation and functional assessments to examine corticomotor development in 151 children without cerebral palsy, aged 10–13 years and born after gestations of 25–41 completed weeks. We hypothesized that motor cortex and corticospinal development are altered in preterm children, which underpins at least some of their motor dysfunction. We report for the first time that every week of reduced gestation is associated with a reduction in corticomotor excitability that remains evident in late childhood. This reduced excitability was associated with poorer motor skill development, particularly manual dexterity. However, child adiposity, sex and socio-economic factors regarding the child's home environment soon after birth were also powerful influences on development of motor skills. Preterm birth was also associated with reduced left hemisphere lateralization, but without increasing the likelihood of being left handed per se. These corticomotor findings have implications for normal motor development, but also raise questions regarding possible longer term consequences of preterm birth on motor function. PMID:22966161

Young Children Surfing: Gender Differences in Computer Use

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kirmani, Mubina Hassanali; Davis, Marcia H.; Kalyanpur, Maya

2009-01-01

Computers have become an important part of young children's lives, both as a source of entertainment and education. The National Association for the Education of Young Children's (NAEYC) position statement on Technology and Young Children (2006) supports the need for equal access to technology for all children with attention to eliminating gender…

Leisure time physical activity in 9- to 11-year-old children born moderately preterm: a cohort study.

PubMed

Nordvall-Lassen, M; Hegaard, H K; Obel, C; Lindhard, M S; Hedegaard, M; Henriksen, T B

2018-05-12

Physical activity is one of the best documented activities with impacts on health in children and adults. Children born preterm show reduced physical and psychosocial function compared to children born at term. This may influence their level of physical activity. Reports on moderately preterm children's physical activities during childhood are limited. Thus, the aim of this study was to compare the leisure time physical activity at age 9-11 years of moderately preterm children with that of children born at term. Data from 4941 mother-child pairs from the Aarhus Birth Cohort (1989-91) were used. The cohort gathered clinical information, including gestational age at delivery. Information about parental socio-demographic and lifestyle factors was obtained from questionnaires completed during the second trimester of pregnancy. Information about children's physical activities was reported in a 9- to 11-year follow-up questionnaire completed by parents detailing how many times per week their child participated in sports activities outside of school, hours spent per week playing outside, and hours per week engaged in sedentary activities. Data were analysed using multiple logistic regression with the lowest activity group as a reference group. A total of 158 children (3.2%) were born moderately preterm, i.e., between 32 and 36 completed weeks. Children born moderately preterm participated in sports activities as often as their peers born at term; they also participated in frequent sports activities (≥ 4 times per week) as often as their peers. There were no differences in hours per week spent playing outside or in sedentary activities between the two groups. Nine- to 11-year-old moderately preterm children participated in sports activities outside school to a similar extent as their peers and engaged in outdoor activities and sedentary activities for the same duration of time per week as their peers born at term.

Health and Development of Children Born after Assisted Reproductive Technology and Sub-Fertility Compared to Naturally Conceived Children: Data from a National Study

PubMed Central

Sutcliffe, Alastair G.; Melhuish, Edward; Barnes, Jacqueline; Gardiner, Julian

2014-01-01

In a non-matched case-control study using data from two large national cohort studies, we investigated whether indicators of child health and development up to 7 years of age differ between children conceived using assisted reproductive technology (ART), children born after sub-fertility (more than 24 months of trying for conception) and other children. Information on ART use/sub-fertility was available for 23,649 children. There were 227 cases (children conceived through ART) and two control groups: 783 children born to sub-fertile couples, and 22,639 children born to couples with no fertility issues. In models adjusted for social and demographic factors there were significant differences between groups in rate of hospital admissions before the children were 9 months old (P=0.029), with the ART group showing higher rates of hospital admission than the no fertility issues control group, the sub-fertile control group being intermediate between the two. Children born after ART had comparable health and development beyond 9 months of age to their naturally conceived peers. This applied to the whole sample and to a sub-sample of children from deprived neighborhoods. PMID:24711911

Noticing Young Children's Mathematical Strengths and Agency

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dockett, Sue; Goff, Wendy

2013-01-01

This paper promotes the importance of noticing young children's mathematical strengths. It draws on the philosophical positions of children's rights and competence to propose a shift in the ways in which all involved might notice the mathematical engagement, understandings, experiences and practices of young children. Noticing children's…

Long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes in children born with gastroschisis: the tiebreaker.

PubMed

Gorra, Adam S; Needelman, Howard; Azarow, Kenneth S; Roberts, Holly J; Jackson, Barbara J; Cusick, Robert A

2012-01-01

We evaluated 2-year neurodevelopmental outcomes in children with gastroschisis. We reviewed the records of children with gastroschisis treated between August 2001 and July 2008. Children discharged from the neonatal intensive care unit were referred to the state-sponsored Developmental Tracking Infant Progress Statewide (TIPS) program. We reviewed TIPS assessments performed before age 2 years. School districts evaluated children referred by TIPS and determined their eligibility for early intervention services. Poor outcomes were defined as scores of "failure" or "moderate/high risk" on the screening assessment or enrollment in early intervention services by 2 years. Children with gastroschisis were compared with case-matched nonsurgical, nonsyndromic children of similar gestational age and birth weight. One hundred five children were born with gastroschisis, and 46 were followed up with TIPS. There was no statistically significant difference in performance on screening assessments or in the rate of enrollment in early intervention services between the gastroschisis children and controls. Children born with gastroschisis have similar 2-year neurodevelopmental outcomes as nonsurgical, nonsyndromic neonatal intensive care unit children of similar gestational age and birth weight. Both groups of children have a higher rate of enrollment in early intervention than their healthy peers. These data suggest that neurodevelopmental outcomes in gastroschisis children are delayed secondary to prematurity rather than the presence of the surgical disease. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An Interview Study of Young Adults Born to Mothers with Mild Intellectual Disability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindblad, Ida; Billstedt, Eva; Gillberg, Christopher; Fernell, Elisabeth

2013-01-01

A group of 10 young adults from a population-based series in Sweden, of originally 42 individuals, born to mothers with mild intellectual disability (ID), were interviewed with regard to their experiences during childhood, adolescence, and their current situation. The interview revealed that 6 of the 10 individuals had been removed from their…

Young Children and Job Satisfaction.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Sandra L.; Sloane, Douglas M.

1992-01-01

Used data from General Social Surveys to examine effect of young children on job satisfaction of men and women. Findings suggest that young children have no effect on job satisfaction of male or female workers regardless of time period, work status, or marital status. This was true for women working in labor market as well as in home. (Author/NB)

Month of Birth and Children's Health in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lokshin, Michael; Radyakin, Sergiy

2012-01-01

We use data from three waves of India National Family Health Survey to explore the relationship between the month of birth and the health outcomes of young children in India. We find that children born during the monsoon months have lower anthropometric scores compared to children born during the fall-winter months. We propose and test hypotheses…

Social spaces for young children in hospital.

PubMed

Lambert, V; Coad, J; Hicks, P; Glacken, M

2014-03-01

In the last number of years heightened interest has been attributed to the impact of hospital environments on children's psychosocial well-being. With policy largely built around adult assumptions, knowledge about what constitutes a child-friendly hospital environment from young children's perspectives has been lacking. If hospital environments are to aspire to being child friendly then the views of younger aged children must be taken into account. The current study investigated young children's perspectives of hospital social spaces to inform the design of the built environment of a new children's hospital. An exploratory qualitative participatory design was employed. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews (one-to-one and group workshops) which incorporated art-based activities to actively engage young children. Fifty-five young children aged 5 to 8 years with various acute and chronic illnesses were recruited from inpatient, outpatient and emergency departments of three children's hospitals. Young children want a diversity of readily available, independently accessible, age, gender and developmentally appropriate leisure and entertainment facilities seamlessly integrated throughout the hospital environment. Such activities were invaluable for creating a positive hospital experience for children by combating boredom, enriching choice and control and reducing a sense of isolation through enhanced socialization. When in hospital, young children want to feel socially connected to the internal hospital community as well as to the outside world. Technology can assist to broaden the spectrum of children's social connectivity when in hospital - to home, school and the wider outside world. While technology offers many opportunities to support children's psychosocial well-being when in confined healthcare spaces, the implementation and operation of such services and systems require much further research in the areas of ethics, facilitation, organizational

Protecting Adults and Children from Blood-Borne Pathogens.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Freeman, Nancy K.; Corning, Lisa L.

2000-01-01

Recommends universal precautions policies and procedures to minimize for children and adults in early childhood settings the risk of infection from exposure to blood-borne pathogens such as hepatitis B or HIV. Outlines symptoms of hepatitis B and HIV/AIDS. Discusses legal and ethical implications related to inclusion. Lists resources for teachers…

Sleep/Wake Patterns and Parental Perceptions of Sleep in Children Born Preterm

PubMed Central

Biggs, Sarah N.; Meltzer, Lisa J.; Tapia, Ignacio E.; Traylor, Joel; Nixon, Gillian M.; Horne, Rosemary S.C.; Doyle, Lex W.; Asztalos, Elizabeth; Mindell, Jodi A.; Marcus, Carole L.

2016-01-01

Study Objectives: To compare sleep/wake patterns in children born preterm in Australia vs Canada and determine cultural differences in the relationship between parental perception of sleep and actual sleep behaviors. Methods: Australian and Canadian children born preterm were recruited from the Caffeine for Apnea of Prematurity trial (n = 188, 5–12 y) and underwent 14 days actigraphy monitoring. Parents completed the National Sleep Foundation 2004 Sleep in America questionnaire. Cross-cultural differences in sleep characteristics assessed by actigraphy and parent-reported questionnaire were examined. Correlational analyses determined the associations between parental perceptions of child sleep need and sleep behavior. Results: Actigraphy showed preterm children obtained, on average, 8 h sleep/night, one hour less than population recommendations for their age. There was no difference in total sleep time (TST) between Australian and Canadian cohorts; however, bed and wake times were earlier in Australian children. Bedtimes and TST varied by 60 minutes from night to night in both cohorts. Parent-reported child TST on the National Sleep Foundation questionnaire was 90 minutes longer than recorded by actigraphy. Both bedtime and TST on weekdays and weekends were related to parental perception of child sleep need in the Australian cohort. Only TST on weekdays was related to parental perception of child sleep need in the Canadian cohort. Conclusions: This study suggests that short sleep duration and irregular sleep schedules are common in children born preterm. Cultural differences in the association between parental perception of child sleep need and actual sleep behaviors provide important targets for future sleep health education. Citation: Biggs SN, Meltzer LJ, Tapia IE, Traylor J, Nixon GM, Horne RS, Doyle LW, Asztalos E, Mindell JA, Marcus CL. Sleep/wake patterns and parental perceptions of sleep in children born preterm. J Clin Sleep Med 2016;12(5):711–717

Epidemiological Paradox or Immigrant Vulnerability? Obesity Among Young Children of Immigrants

PubMed Central

Baker, Elizabeth H.; Rendall, Michael S.; Weden, Margaret M.

2015-01-01

According to the “immigrant epidemiological paradox,” immigrants and their children enjoy health advantages over their U.S.-born peers—advantages that diminish with greater acculturation. We investigated child obesity as a potentially significant deviation from this paradox for second-generation immigrant children. We evaluated two alternate measures of mother's acculturation: age at arrival in the United States and English language proficiency. To obtain sufficient numbers of second-generation immigrant children, we pooled samples across two related, nationally representative surveys. Each included measured (not parent-reported) height and weight of kindergartners. We also estimated models that alternately included and excluded mother's pre-pregnancy weight status as a predictor. Our findings are opposite to those predicted by the immigrant epidemiological paradox: children of U.S.-born mothers were less likely to be obese than otherwise similar children of foreign-born mothers; and the children of the least-acculturated immigrant mothers, as measured by low English language proficiency, were the most likely to be obese. Foreign-born mothers had lower (healthier) pre-pregnancy weight than U.S.-born mothers, and this was protective against their second-generation children's obesity. This protection, however, was not sufficiently strong to outweigh factors associated or correlated with the mothers' linguistic isolation and marginal status as immigrants. PMID:26111970

Epidemiological Paradox or Immigrant Vulnerability? Obesity Among Young Children of Immigrants.

PubMed

Baker, Elizabeth H; Rendall, Michael S; Weden, Margaret M

2015-08-01

According to the "immigrant epidemiological paradox," immigrants and their children enjoy health advantages over their U.S.-born peers--advantages that diminish with greater acculturation. We investigated child obesity as a potentially significant deviation from this paradox for second-generation immigrant children. We evaluated two alternate measures of mother's acculturation: age at arrival in the United States and English language proficiency. To obtain sufficient numbers of second-generation immigrant children, we pooled samples across two related, nationally representative surveys. Each included measured (not parent-reported) height and weight of kindergartners. We also estimated models that alternately included and excluded mother's pre-pregnancy weight status as a predictor. Our findings are opposite to those predicted by the immigrant epidemiological paradox: children of U.S.-born mothers were less likely to be obese than otherwise similar children of foreign-born mothers; and the children of the least-acculturated immigrant mothers, as measured by low English language proficiency, were the most likely to be obese. Foreign-born mothers had lower (healthier) pre-pregnancy weight than U.S.-born mothers, and this was protective against their second-generation children's obesity. This protection, however, was not sufficiently strong to outweigh factors associated or correlated with the mothers' linguistic isolation and marginal status as immigrants.

Development skills of children born premature with low and very low birth weight.

PubMed

Ribeiro, Camila da Costa; Pachelli, Mariane Regina de Oliveira; Amaral, Natalie Camillo de Oliveira; Lamônica, Dionísia Aparecida Cusin

2017-01-30

To compare the performance of children born premature with low birth weight (LBW) and very low birth-weight (VLBW) with that of children born at term, within the age range of one to three years, regarding child development in the gross motor, fine motor-adaptive, personal-social and language domains. This is a cross-sectional study in a cohort of 150 infants born premature (experimental group) and at term (control group) divided into eight groups with respect to weight (low birth weight: <2500 grams and very low birth weight: <1500 grams) and age range (aged 12 to 24 and 25 to 36 months). The control groups were paired with the experimental groups as for gender, chronological age, and socioeconomic level. Assessment comprised the application of anamnesis protocol, socioeconomic classification, and Denver Developmental Screening Test (DDST-II). Corrected age was calculated for premature children up to 24 months of age. Descriptive statistical analysis and the Student's t-test were used. No statistically significant difference was found in the comparison between the groups of infants born premature and at term for all domains evaluated. The performance of infants born premature was lower than that of infants born at term regarding the gross motor, fine motor-adaptive, personal-social and language domains. In this study, the preterm groups presented different performances, i.e., normative, average, and below average performances were observed within the same group.

MEASURING DIETARY EXPOSURE OF YOUNG CHILDREN

EPA Science Inventory

Young children do not consume foods in a structured manner. Their foods contact surfaces (hands, floors, eating surfaces, etc.) that may be contaminated while they are eating them. Thus, dietary exposures of young children are difficult to accurately assess or measure. A recen...

Delayed development of neural language organization in very preterm born children.

PubMed

Mürner-Lavanchy, Ines; Steinlin, Maja; Kiefer, Claus; Weisstanner, Christian; Ritter, Barbara Catherine; Perrig, Walter; Everts, Regula

2014-01-01

This study investigates neural language organization in very preterm born children compared to control children and examines the relationship between language organization, age, and language performance. Fifty-six preterms and 38 controls (7-12 y) completed a functional magnetic resonance imaging language task. Lateralization and signal change were computed for language-relevant brain regions. Younger preterms showed a bilateral language network whereas older preterms revealed left-sided language organization. No age-related differences in language organization were observed in controls. Results indicate that preterms maintain atypical bilateral language organization longer than term born controls. This might reflect a delay of neural language organization due to very premature birth.

The State of Young Children in Israel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kosher, Hanita, Ed.

2015-01-01

This document, based on the statistical yearbook, "Children in Israel 2014," presents data on the population of young children in Israel. The document presents a current picture of the well-being of young children in Israel intended to assist policy-makers and practitioners to understand the situation of this group of children and to…

NEONATAL CEREBRAL MORPHOMETRY AND LATER RISK OF PERSISTENT INATTENTION/HYPERACTIVITY IN CHILDREN BORN VERY PRETERM

PubMed Central

Bora, Samudragupta; Pritchard, Verena E.; Chen, Zhe; Inder, Terrie E.; Woodward, Lianne J.

2014-01-01

Background Attention problems are among the most prevalent neurobehavioral morbidities affecting very preterm (VPT) born children. The first study aim was to document rates of persistent attention/hyperactivity problems from ages 4 to 9 years in a regional cohort of VPT born children. The second aim was to examine the extent to which persistent problems were related to cerebral white matter abnormality and structural development on neonatal MRI. Methods Data were drawn from a prospective longitudinal study of 110 VPT (≤32 weeks’ gestation) and 113 full-term (FT) children born from 1998 to 2000. At term equivalent, all VPT and 10 FT children underwent cerebral structural MRI, with scans analyzed qualitatively for white matter abnormalities and quantitatively for cortical and subcortical gray matter, myelinated and unmyelinated white matter, and cerebrospinal fluid volumes. At ages 4, 6, and 9 years, each child’s parent and teacher completed the Inattention/Hyperactivity subscale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Results VPT born children had a 5-fold increased risk of persistent attention/hyperactivity problems compared to FT children (13.1% vs. 2.8%; p=.002). No association was found between neonatal white matter abnormalities and later persistent inattention/hyperactivity risk (p≥.24). In contrast, measures of cerebral structural development including volumetric estimates of total cerebral tissue and cerebrospinal fluid relative to intracranial volume were associated with an increased risk of persistent attention/hyperactivity problems in VPT born children (p=.001). The dorsal prefrontal region showed the largest volumetric reduction (↓3.2–8.2ml). These brain-behavior associations persisted and in some cases, strengthened after covariate adjustment for postmenstrual age at MRI, sex, and family socioeconomic status. Conclusions Just over one in 10 VPT born children are subject to early onset and persistent attention/hyperactivity problems

Caring for Young Children in the Home.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Birckmayer, Jennifer; And Others

Group leaders of 10- to 13-year-olds may use this program guide to help the preteens interact with young children through six discussion meetings and five visits with a preschool child at home. Discussion topics concern (1) the family environment of young children, (2) children's play; (3) children's play areas at home, (4) safety at home, (5)…

School-Aged Children Born Preterm: Review of Functioning across Multiple Domains and Guidelines for Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dempsey, Allison G.; Keller-Margulis, Milena; Mire, Sarah; Abrahamson, Catherine; Dutt, Sonia; Llorens, Ashlie; Payan, Anita

2015-01-01

Children born preterm are at risk for developmental deficits across multiple functional domains. As the rate of survival for preterm infants increases due to medical advancements, a greater understanding is needed for how to meet the needs of this growing population in schools. Because approximately 50-70% of children born preterm require…

The Impact of Early Intervention on the School Readiness of Children Born to Teenage Mothers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Amber L.

2015-01-01

This study examined the effect of participation in the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters program on the school readiness of children born to teenage mothers versus children born to traditional-age mothers participating in the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters program. A 45-item survey was collected from the…

[Prosocial Development of Very Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pawl, Jeree, Ed.

1992-01-01

This newsletter presents five articles focusing on the social development of infants and very young children. The first article, "Sympathetic Behavior in Very Young Children," by Lois Barclay Murphy, gives examples of early sympathetic behavior, traces the development of sympathy, identifies individual patterns of sympathetic response,…

Young Children's Exposure to Community Violence.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vig, Susan

1996-01-01

Explores the impact of community violence on the development of young children, especially those with developmental disabilities. Characteristics of young children's responses to stress and trauma are reviewed and child, family, and community factors which contribute to resilience are identified. Intervention approaches are suggested. (Author/DB)

Neonatal Cerebral Morphometry and Later Risk of Persistent Inattention/Hyperactivity in Children Born Very Preterm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bora, Samudragupta; Pritchard, Verena E.; Chen, Zhe; Inder, Terrie E.; Woodward, Lianne J.

2014-01-01

Background: Attention problems are among the most prevalent neurobehavioral morbidities affecting very preterm (VPT) born children. The first study aim was to document rates of persistent attention/hyperactivity problems from ages 4 to 9 years in a regional cohort of VPT born children. The second aim was to examine the extent to which persistent…

The Novice Researcher: Interviewing Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Danby, Susan; Ewing, Lynette; Thorpe, Karen

2011-01-01

Being a novice researcher undertaking research interviews with young children requires understandings of the interview process. By investigating the interaction between a novice researcher undertaking her first interview and a child participant, the authors attend to theoretical principles, such as the competence of young children as informants,…

Input Devices for Young Handicapped Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morris, Karen

The versatility of the computer can be expanded considerably for young handicapped children by using input devices other than the typewriter-style keyboard. Input devices appropriate for young children can be classified into four categories: alternative keyboards, contact switches, speech input devices, and cursor control devices. Described are…

Nonpharmacological management of procedural pain in infants and young children: An abridged Cochrane review

PubMed Central

Riddell, Rebecca Pillai; Racine, Nicole; Turcotte, Kara; Uman, Lindsay S; Horton, Rachel; Osmun, Laila Din; Kohut, Sara Ahola; Stuart, Jessica Hillgrove; Stevens, Bonnie; Lisi, Diana

2011-01-01

BACKGROUND: Acute pain and distress during medical procedures are commonplace for young children. OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of nonpharmacological interventions for acute procedural pain in children up to three years of age. METHODS: Study inclusion criteria were: participants <3 years of age, involved in a randomized controlled or crossover trial, and use of a ‘no-treatment’ control group (51 studies; n=3396). Additional studies meeting all criteria except for study design (eg, use of active control group) were qualitatively described (n=20). RESULTS: For every intervention, data were analyzed separately according to age group (preterm-born, term-born neonate and older infant/young child) and type of pain response (pain reactivity, immediate pain-related regulation). The largest standardized mean differences (SMD) for pain reactivity were as follows: sucking-related interventions (preterm: −0.42 [95% CI −0.68 to −0.15]; neonate −1.45 [CI −2.34 to −0.57]), kangaroo care (preterm −1.12 [95% CI −2.04 to −0.21]), and swaddling/facilitated tucking (preterm −0.97 [95% CI −1.63 to −0.31]). For immediate pain-related regulation, the largest SMDs were: sucking-related interventions (preterm −0.38 [95% CI −0.59 to −0.17]; neonate −0.90 [CI −1.54 to −0.25]), kangaroo care 0.77 (95% CI −1.50 to −0.03]), swaddling/facilitated tucking (preterm −0.75 [95% CI −1.14 to −0.36]), and rocking/holding (neonate −0.75 [95% CI −1.20 to −0.30]). The presence of significant heterogeneity limited confidence in nonsignificant findings for certain other analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Although a number of nonpharmacological treatments have sufficient evidence supporting their efficacy with preterm infants and healthy neonates, no treatments had sufficient evidence to support efficacy with healthy older infants/young children. PMID:22059204

Neuropsychological Impairment in School-Aged Children Born to Mothers With Gestational Diabetes.

PubMed

Bolaños, Lourdes; Matute, Esmeralda; Ramírez-Dueñas, María de Lourdes; Zarabozo, Daniel

2015-10-01

The aim of this study was to determine whether school-aged children born to mothers with gestational diabetes show delays in their neuropsychological development. Several key neuropsychological characteristics of 32 children aged 7 to 9 years born to mothers with gestational diabetes were examined by comparing their performance on cognitive tasks to that of 28 children aged 8 to 10 years whose mothers had glucose levels within normal limits during pregnancy. The gestational diabetes group showed low performance on graphic, spatial, and bimanual skills and a higher presence of soft neurologic signs. Lower scores for general intellectual level and the working memory index were also evident. Our results suggest that gestational diabetes is associated with mild cognitive impairment. © The Author(s) 2015.

Development of emotional and behavioral regulation in children born extremely preterm and very preterm: biological and social influences.

PubMed

Clark, Caron A C; Woodward, Lianne J; Horwood, L John; Moor, Stephanie

2008-01-01

This study describes the development of emotional and behavioral regulation in a regional cohort of children born extremely preterm (<28 weeks gestational age, n = 39), very preterm (<34 weeks gestational age, n = 56), and full term (n = 103). At 2 and 4 years, children born at younger gestational ages demonstrated poorer self-regulation across multiple contexts spanning observed interactions, formal cognitive testing, and parental report of child behavior at home. Among children born preterm, the 2 strongest predictors of impairments in self-regulation were the presence of moderate-to-severe cerebral white matter abnormalities on neonatal magnetic resonance and a less sensitive parenting style when children were aged 2 years. Findings support the importance of early neurological development and parenting for developing regulation in children born very preterm.

The Development of Effortful Control in Children Born Preterm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poehlmann, Julie; Schwichtenberg, A. J. Miller; Shah, Prachi E.; Shlafer, Rebecca J.; Hahn, Emily; Maleck, Sarah

2010-01-01

This prospective longitudinal study examined emerging effortful control skills at 24- and 36-months postterm in 172 children born preterm (less than 36 weeks gestation). Infant (neonatal health risks), family (sociodemographic risks), and maternal risk factors (depressive symptoms, anger expressions during play interactions) were assessed at six…

Developmental delay in moderately preterm-born children with low socioeconomic status: risks multiply.

PubMed

Potijk, Marieke R; Kerstjens, Jorien M; Bos, Arend F; Reijneveld, Sijmen A; de Winter, Andrea F

2013-11-01

To assess separate and joint effects of low socioeconomic status (SES) and moderate prematurity on preschool developmental delay. Prospective cohort study with a community-based sample of preterm- and term-born children (Longitudinal Preterm Outcome Project). We assessed SES on the basis of education, occupation, and family income. The Ages and Stages Questionnaire was used to assess developmental delay at age 4 years. We determined scores for overall development, and domains fine motor, gross motor, communication, problem-solving, and personal-social of 926 moderately preterm-born (MP) (32-36 weeks gestation) and 544 term-born children. In multivariable logistic regression analyses, we used standardized values for SES and gestational age (GA). Prevalence rates for overall developmental delay were 12.5%, 7.8%, and 5.6% in MP children with low, intermediate, and high SES, respectively, and 7.2%, 4.0%, and 2.8% in term-born children, respectively. The risk for overall developmental delay increased more with decreasing SES than with decreasing GA, but the difference was not statistically significant: OR (95% CI) for a 1 standard deviation decrease were: 1.62 (1.30-2.03) and 1.34 (1.05-1.69), respectively, after adjustment for sex, number of siblings, and maternal age. No interaction was found except for communication, showing that effects of SES and GA are mostly multiplicative. Low SES and moderate prematurity are separate risk factors with multiplicative effects on developmental delay. The double jeopardy of MP children with low SES needs special attention in pediatric care. Copyright © 2013 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Health outcomes of children born to cosmetologists compared to children of women in other occupations.

PubMed

Gallicchio, Lisa; Miller, Susan R; Greene, Teresa; Zacur, Howard; Flaws, Jodi A

2010-06-01

The purpose of the study was to examine the health of children born to cosmetologists compared to the health of children of women working in other occupations. Cross-sectional data were analyzed from 319 cosmetologists and 366 women in other occupations aged 21 to 55 years who reported at least one live birth. Repeated-measures modeling was used to account for lack of independence among multiple pregnancies per participant. The results showed that cosmetologist occupation was associated with having a child with a learning disorder; however, the strength of this association was attenuated and the odds ratio was not statistically significant after confounder adjustment. Cosmetologist occupation was not associated with other adverse health outcomes among the children born to women in such an occupation, including urinary/kidney health problems. The findings indicate that cosmetologists are not at increased risk of having a child with medical problems compared to women in other occupations. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Altered Network Oscillations and Functional Connectivity Dynamics in Children Born Very Preterm.

PubMed

Moiseev, Alexander; Doesburg, Sam M; Herdman, Anthony T; Ribary, Urs; Grunau, Ruth E

2015-09-01

Structural brain connections develop atypically in very preterm children, and altered functional connectivity is also evident in fMRI studies. Such alterations in brain network connectivity are associated with cognitive difficulties in this population. Little is known, however, about electrophysiological interactions among specific brain networks in children born very preterm. In the present study, we recorded magnetoencephalography while very preterm children and full-term controls performed a visual short-term memory task. Regions expressing task-dependent activity changes were identified using beamformer analysis, and inter-regional phase synchrony was calculated. Very preterm children expressed altered regional recruitment in distributed networks of brain areas, across standard physiological frequency ranges including the theta, alpha, beta and gamma bands. Reduced oscillatory synchrony was observed among task-activated brain regions in very preterm children, particularly for connections involving areas critical for executive abilities, including middle frontal gyrus. These findings suggest that inability to recruit neurophysiological activity and interactions in distributed networks including frontal regions may contribute to difficulties in cognitive development in children born very preterm.

London-born black Caribbean children are at increased risk of atopic dermatitis.

PubMed

Williams, H C; Pembroke, A C; Forsdyke, H; Boodoo, G; Hay, R J; Burney, P G

1995-02-01

Previous reports suggest that atopic dermatitis is more common in black Caribbean children born in the United Kingdom than in white children. It is unclear whether these differences are caused by selection bias or variations in the use of the word "eczema" in the groups studied. Our objective was to explore ethnic group differences in the prevalence of atopic dermatitis in London schoolchildren. A cross-sectional prevalence survey of 693 junior school children in three schools was performed. Atopic dermatitis was defined in three ways: (1) by a dermatologist, (2) by visible flexural dermatitis as recorded by an independent observer, and (3) by a history of flexural dermatitis according to the child's parents. The prevalence of atopic dermatitis according to examination by a dermatologist was 16.3% in black Caribbean children and 8.7% in white children. This increased risk was present for different methods of defining of a atopic dermatitis and persisted after adjustment for potential confounders. London-born black Caribbean children appear to be at an increased risk of having atopic dermatitis.

Accommodation and convergence in 10-year-old prematurely born and full-term children: a population-based study.

PubMed

Larsson, Eva; Rydberg, Agneta; Holmström, Gerd

2012-09-01

To examine the accommodative amplitude and convergence in 10-year-old prematurely born children previously screened for retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and to compare with full-term controls of the same age. Two-hundred and thirteen prematurely born and 217 children born at term were included. Accommodative amplitude and near-point convergence were assessed, together with best-corrected visual acuity (VA). A questionnaire was answered regarding possible problems at school. Binocular accommodation (P = 0.03) and convergence (P = 0.003) were significantly poorer in prematurely born children. Accommodation was correlated to neurological findings in the preterm group, but not to the degree of prematurity or stage of ROP. Regarding convergence there were no correlations to neurology, stage of ROP, or degree of prematurity. For neither accommodation nor convergence were any correlations with distance and near VA found. Preterm children had a higher prevalence of school problems, and there was an association with poor accommodation. Prematurely born children had poorer accommodation and convergence than full-term children, but no association with near VA was found. The reduction of accommodative amplitude and convergence was small and was probably of little clinical significance. However, it may have additional effects on other ophthalmological problems and school problems in the preterm group.

Mother-child interactions in young children with excessive physical aggression and in typically developing young children.

PubMed

Urbain-Gauthier, Nadine; Wendland, Jaqueline

2017-07-01

Among the multiple risk factors, the emergence of conduct problems in young children may be linked to harsh parenting and child's temperamental difficulties, leading to a reciprocal early discordant relationship. Little is known about the characteristics of early parent-child interactions in young children with physical aggression. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the characteristics of mother-child interactions in dyads referred for excessive physical aggression in young children under 5 years of age compared to mother-child interactions in typically developing young children. Mother-child interactions were assessed during a free-play session in both a clinical sample ( N = 70, child mean age  = 3.5 years) and a nonclinical sample ( N = 80, child mean age  = 3.5 years) by using the Rating Scale of Interaction Style (Clark and Seifer, adapted by Molitor and Mayes). Significant differences were found between several interactive features in clinical and nonclinical dyads. In clinical dyads, mothers' behaviors were often characterized by intrusiveness and criticism toward children, and poor facilitative positioning. Children with excessive aggressive behavior often displayed poor communication, initiation of bids, and poor responsiveness toward the mother. They displayed fewer sustained bouts of play than typically developing children did. In clinical dyads, strong positive correlations were found between child responsiveness and maternal interest in engagement ( r = .41, p < .001), while the child displaying sustained bouts of play was negatively correlated with the mother's attempts to intrude on the child's activity ( r = .64, p < .05). These data show that children with excessive aggressive behavior develop disrupted mother-infant interactions from a very young age. Several negative interactive features and correlations between child behavior and maternal behavior were found in clinical samples. The effects of

Korean-Immigrant Parents' Support of Their American-Born Children's Development and Maintenance of the Home Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Hyun-Sook

2013-01-01

This study explores Korean-immigrant parents' language ideologies and practices with respect to their American-born children's language development. Participants were seven ethnic Korean families composed of immigrant parents and their American-born children, aged between five and seven, in Midwestern America. Interviews in the medium of Korean…

The Children Should Lead Us: Diane Ehrensaft's "Gender Born, Gender Made--Raising Healthy Gender-Nonconforming Children"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beemyn, Genny

2013-01-01

This article reviews Diane Ehrensaft's "Gender Born, Gender Made: Raising Healthy Gender-Nonconforming Children", a thoughtful and practical guide that can help parents, other family members, and therapists better understand and support children and youth whom the author refers to as "gender creative." Ehrensaft's work is at the forefront of a…

Visuospatial working memory in very preterm and term born children--impact of age and performance.

PubMed

Mürner-Lavanchy, I; Ritter, B C; Spencer-Smith, M M; Perrig, W J; Schroth, G; Steinlin, M; Everts, R

2014-07-01

Working memory is crucial for meeting the challenges of daily life and performing academic tasks, such as reading or arithmetic. Very preterm born children are at risk of low working memory capacity. The aim of this study was to examine the visuospatial working memory network of school-aged preterm children and to determine the effect of age and performance on the neural working memory network. Working memory was assessed in 41 very preterm born children and 36 term born controls (aged 7-12 years) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and neuropsychological assessment. While preterm children and controls showed equal working memory performance, preterm children showed less involvement of the right middle frontal gyrus, but higher fMRI activation in superior frontal regions than controls. The younger and low-performing preterm children presented an atypical working memory network whereas the older high-performing preterm children recruited a working memory network similar to the controls. Results suggest that younger and low-performing preterm children show signs of less neural efficiency in frontal brain areas. With increasing age and performance, compensational mechanisms seem to occur, so that in preterm children, the typical visuospatial working memory network is established by the age of 12 years. Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Emotional Responsivity in Young Children with Williams Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fidler, Debbie J.; Hepburn, Susan L.; Most, David E.; Philofsky, Amy; Rogers, Sally J.

2007-01-01

The hypothesis that young children with Williams syndrome show higher rates of emotional responsivity relative to other children with developmental disabilities was explored. Performance of 23 young children with Williams syndrome and 30 MA-matched children with developmental disabilities of nonspecific etiologies was compared on an adaptation of…

Academic performance of children born preterm: a meta-analysis and meta-regression.

PubMed

Twilhaar, E Sabrina; de Kieviet, Jorrit F; Aarnoudse-Moens, Cornelieke Sh; van Elburg, Ruurd M; Oosterlaan, Jaap

2017-08-28

Advances in neonatal healthcare have resulted in decreased mortality after preterm birth but have not led to parallel decreases in morbidity. Academic performance provides insight in the outcomes and specific difficulties and needs of preterm children. To study academic performance in preterm children born in the antenatal steroids and surfactant era and possible moderating effects of perinatal and demographic factors. PubMed, Web of Science and PsycINFO were searched for peer-reviewed articles. Cohort studies with a full-term control group reporting standardised academic performance scores of preterm children (<37 weeks of gestation) at age 5 years or older and born in the antenatal steroids and surfactant era were included. Academic test scores and special educational needs of preterm and full-term children were analysed using random effects meta-analysis. Random effects meta-regressions were performed to explore the predictive role of perinatal and demographic factors for between-study variance in effect sizes. The 17 eligible studies included 2390 preterm children and 1549 controls. Preterm children scored 0.71 SD below full-term peers on arithmetic (p<0.001), 0.44 and 0.52 SD lower on reading and spelling (p<0.001) and were 2.85 times more likely to receive special educational assistance (95% CI 2.12 to 3.84, p<0.001). Bronchopulmonarydysplasia explained 44% of the variance in academic performance (p=0.006). Preterm children born in the antenatal steroids and surfactant era show considerable academic difficulties. Preterm children with bronchopulmonarydysplasia are at particular risk for poor academic outcome. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Healing Art: Young Children Coping With Stress.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hale, Judy Ann

Helping young children to cope with stress plays a vital role in today's classroom. It is normal for children to experience stress, which comes from pressures such as family, friends, and school. Some of the indicators of stress in young children are behavioral changes (e.g., mood swings, changes in sleep patterns, and incontinence) and physical…

Seven Myths about Young Children and Technology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Plowman, Lydia; McPake, Joanna

2013-01-01

Parents and educators tend to have many questions about young children's play with computers and other technologies at home. They can find it difficult to know what is best for children because these toys and products were not around when they were young. Some will say that children have an affinity for technology that will be valuable in their…

[[Streptococcus mutans Acquisition and Dental Caries Development in First-Born Children].

PubMed

Noce, Erica; Rubira, Cassia Maria Fischer; da Silva Rosa, Odila Pereira; da Silva, Salete Moura Bonifácio; Bretz, Walter Antonio

2008-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the moment of streptococcus mutans (SM) acquisition, caries development and their associate variables along 23 months, in first-born children of low socioeconomic status families, starting at 7 months of age. METHOD: The sample was chosen based on highly SM-colonized mothers, including all members of 14 families living in the same houses. The study included 14 mothers, 14 fathers and 14 first-borns and 8 relatives (mostly grandparents). Initial clinical examinations and radiographs determined the caries indices and periodontal conditions of the adults. SM count in all adults was made in the first 2 visits. The children were examined for SM count, number of teeth and number of carious lesions, in 4 visits. RESULTS: SM prevalence was high in the adults, being absent in only one of the parents. SM was found in 1, 2, 3 and 10 children in the first, second, third and fourth visits. Dental caries was detected in only 3 children in the last visit (at 30 months), who presented significantly higher SM scores than the children without caries in the same visit. CONCLUSION: A low income social condition and mothers highly colonized by SM do not mean necessarily early SM colonization and high caries activity in children with oral homecare. Caries development is significantly associated with high SM scores in the children.

Health Update: Foot Problems of Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aronson, Susan S.

1987-01-01

Discusses common foot problems of young children and ways parents, child caregivers, and physicians should deal with them. Particular attention is given to care and medical treatment for flat feet, peeling feet, and "w"-sitting in young children. (Author/BB)

Motor, cognitive, and behavioural disorders in children born very preterm.

PubMed

Foulder-Hughes, L A; Cooke, R W I

2003-02-01

Children born preterm have been shown to exhibit poor motor function and behaviour that is associated with school failure in the presence of average intelligence. A geographically determined cohort of two-hundred and eighty preterm children (151 males, 129 females) born before 32 weeks' gestation and attending mainstream schools were examined at 7 to 8 years of age together with 210 (112 males, 98 females) age- and sex-matched control participants were tested for motor, cognitive, and behavioural problems. Tests applied were the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC), Clinical Observations of Motor and Postural Skills (COMPS), Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI), Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, and Connors' Teacher Rating Scale for attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Control children scored significantly better than the preterm group on all motor, cognitive, and behavioural measures. The lowest birthweight and most preterm individuals tended to score the lowest. Motor impairment was diagnosed in 86 (30.7%) of the preterm group and 14 (6.7%) of the control children using the MABC; 97 (42.7%) and 18 (10.2%) using the COMPS; and 68 (24.3%) and 17 (8.1%) respectively using the VMI. Each test of motor function identified different children with disability, although 23 preterm children were identified as having motor disability by all three tests. Preterm children were more likely to have signs of inattention and impulsivity and have a diagnosis of ADHD. Minor motor disabilities persist in survivors of preterm birth despite improvements in care and are not confined to the smallest or most preterm infants. They may exist independently of cognitive and behavioural deficits, although they often co-exist. The condition is heterogeneous and may require more than one test to identify all children with potential learning problems.

Patterns of Antipsychotic Prescribing by Physicians to Young Children.

PubMed

Huskamp, Haiden A; Horvitz-Lennon, Marcela; Berndt, Ernst R; Normand, Sharon-Lise T; Donohue, Julie M

2016-12-01

Antipsychotic use among young children has grown rapidly despite a lack of approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for broad use in this age group. Characteristics of physicians who prescribed antipsychotics to young children were identified, and prescribing patterns involving young children and adults were compared. Physician-level prescribing data from IMS Health's Xponent database were linked with American Medical Association Masterfile data and analyzed. The sample included all U.S. psychiatrists and a random sample of 5% of family medicine physicians who wrote at least ten antipsychotic prescriptions per year from 2008 to 2011 (N=31,713). Logistic and hierarchical binomial regression models were estimated to examine physician prescribing for children ages zero to nine, and the types and numbers of ingredients used for children versus adults ages 20 to 64 were compared. Among antipsychotic prescribers, 42.2% had written at least one antipsychotic prescription for young children. Such prescribing was more likely among physicians age ≤39 versus ≥60 (odds ratio [OR]=1.70) and physicians in rural versus nonrural areas (OR=1.11) and was less likely among males (OR=.93) and graduates of a top-25 versus a lower-ranked U.S. medical school (OR=.87). Among physicians who prescribed antipsychotics to young children and adults, 75.0% of prescriptions for children and 35.7% of those for adults were for drugs with an FDA-approved indication for that age. Fewer antipsychotic agents were prescribed for young children (median=2) versus adults (median=7). Prescribing antipsychotics for young children was relatively common, but prescribing patterns differed between young children and adults.

Mapping with Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sunal, Cynthia Szymanski; Warash, Bobbi Gibson

Techniques for encouraging young children to discover the purpose and use of maps are discussed. Motor activity and topological studies form a base from which the teacher and children can build a mapping program of progressive sophistication. Concepts important to mapping include boundaries, regions, exteriors, interiors, holes, order, point of…

Helping Young Children Manage Stress.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas Child Care, 2002

2002-01-01

Describes the common symptoms of stress exhibited by young children including: (1) social or behavioral; (2) physical; (3) emotional; (4) cognitive; and (5) language. Addresses causes of stress, which typically represent change, fear, or loss in children. Offers strategies for easing children's stress including muscle relaxation, deep breathing,…

Interventions for the prevention of nutritional rickets in term born children.

PubMed

Lerch, C; Meissner, T

2007-10-17

Nutritional rickets is a disease of growing children leading to bone deformities, bone pain, convulsions or delayed motor development. Today, high-incidence of nutritional rickets is mainly found in low-income countries. To assess the effects of various interventions on the prevention of nutritional rickets in term born children. Studies were obtained from computerised searches of The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS and reference lists of relevant articles. We contacted authors of studies or reviews to obtain further studies. Studies were included if they were randomised controlled clinical trials, controlled clinical trials or prospective cohort studies comparing any intervention for the prevention of nutritional rickets in term born children with placebo or no intervention. Minimum duration of the intervention was three months for children under 12 months or six months for children over 12 months. Two authors independently extracted data and assessed study quality. Authors of studies were contacted to obtain missing information. Four studies enrolled approximately 1700 participants. Trials lasted between nine months to two years. Three studies were randomised controlled trials, two of which showed a cluster randomised design; one trial probably was a controlled trial with researcher controlled group assignment. In children up to three years of age in Turkey, Vitamin D compared to no intervention showed a relative risk of 0.04 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0 to 0.71). Despite a marked non-compliance, a Chinese trial in children up to three years of age comparing a combined intervention of supplementation of vitamin D, calcium and nutritional counseling showed a relative risk of 0.76 (95% CI 0.61 to 0.95) compared to no intervention. In two studies conducted in older children in China and in France no rickets occurred in both the intervention and control group. There a only few studies on the prevention of nutritional rickets in term born children. Until

Effects of gestational age on brain volume and cognitive functions in generally healthy very preterm born children during school-age: A voxel-based morphometry study.

PubMed

Lemola, Sakari; Oser, Nadine; Urfer-Maurer, Natalie; Brand, Serge; Holsboer-Trachsler, Edith; Bechtel, Nina; Grob, Alexander; Weber, Peter; Datta, Alexandre N

2017-01-01

To determine whether the relationship of gestational age (GA) with brain volumes and cognitive functions is linear or whether it follows a threshold model in preterm and term born children during school-age. We studied 106 children (M = 10 years 1 month, SD = 16 months; 40 females) enrolled in primary school: 57 were healthy very preterm children (10 children born 24-27 completed weeks' gestation (extremely preterm), 14 children born 28-29 completed weeks' gestation, 19 children born 30-31 completed weeks' gestation (very preterm), and 14 born 32 completed weeks' gestation (moderately preterm)) all born appropriate for GA (AGA) and 49 term-born children. Neuroimaging involved voxel-based morphometry with the statistical parametric mapping software. Cognitive functions were assessed with the WISC-IV. General Linear Models and multiple regressions were conducted controlling age, sex, and maternal education. Compared to groups of children born 30 completed weeks' gestation and later, children born <28 completed weeks' gestation had less gray matter volume (GMV) and white matter volume (WMV) and poorer cognitive functions including decreased full scale IQ, and processing speed. Differences in GMV partially mediated the relationship between GA and full scale IQ in preterm born children. In preterm children who are born AGA and without major complications GA is associated with brain volume and cognitive functions. In particular, decreased brain volume becomes evident in the extremely preterm group (born <28 completed weeks' gestation). In preterm children born 30 completed weeks' gestation and later the relationship of GA with brain volume and cognitive functions may be less strong as previously thought.

Young Children as Curators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hope, Alice

2018-01-01

Literature that addresses young children's learning in galleries and museums typically concentrates on what is already offered and discusses what has proven to be effective, or not, in accommodating their needs. This article offers insight into how objects can be explored with early years children at school, to create greater understanding of…

Young Children's Concepts of Shape.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clements, Douglas H.; Swaminathan, Sudha; Hannibal, Mary Anne Zeitler; Sarama, Julie

1999-01-01

Investigates, by conducting individual clinical interviews of 97 children ages 3 to 6, the criteria preschool children use to distinguish members of a class of shapes from other figures, emphasizing identification and descriptions of shapes and reasons for these identifications. Concludes that young children initially form schemas on the basis of…

Young Children in Deep Poverty. Fact Sheet

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ekono, Mercedes; Jiang, Yang; Smith, Sheila

2016-01-01

A U.S. family of three living in deep poverty survives on an annual income below $9,276, or less than $9.00 a day per family member. The struggle to raise children on such a meager income is not a rare circumstance among U.S. families, especially those with young children. Currently, 11 percent of young children (0-9 years) live in households with…

Sleep/Wake Patterns and Parental Perceptions of Sleep in Children Born Preterm.

PubMed

Biggs, Sarah N; Meltzer, Lisa J; Tapia, Ignacio E; Traylor, Joel; Nixon, Gillian M; Horne, Rosemary S C; Doyle, Lex W; Asztalos, Elizabeth; Mindell, Jodi A; Marcus, Carole L

2016-05-15

To compare sleep/wake patterns in children born preterm in Australia vs Canada and determine cultural differences in the relationship between parental perception of sleep and actual sleep behaviors. Australian and Canadian children born preterm were recruited from the Caffeine for Apnea of Prematurity trial (n = 188, 5-12 y) and underwent 14 days actigraphy monitoring. Parents completed the National Sleep Foundation 2004 Sleep in America questionnaire. Cross-cultural differences in sleep characteristics assessed by actigraphy and parent-reported questionnaire were examined. Correlational analyses determined the associations between parental perceptions of child sleep need and sleep behavior. Actigraphy showed preterm children obtained, on average, 8 h sleep/night, one hour less than population recommendations for their age. There was no difference in total sleep time (TST) between Australian and Canadian cohorts; however, bed and wake times were earlier in Australian children. Bedtimes and TST varied by 60 minutes from night to night in both cohorts. Parent-reported child TST on the National Sleep Foundation questionnaire was 90 minutes longer than recorded by actigraphy. Both bedtime and TST on weekdays and weekends were related to parental perception of child sleep need in the Australian cohort. Only TST on weekdays was related to parental perception of child sleep need in the Canadian cohort. This study suggests that short sleep duration and irregular sleep schedules are common in children born preterm. Cultural differences in the association between parental perception of child sleep need and actual sleep behaviors provide important targets for future sleep health education. © 2016 American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

Barriers to a healthy lifestyle for three- to four-year-old children of Australian-born and overseas-born mothers with post-gestational diabetes: An Australian qualitative study.

PubMed

Zulfiqar, Tehzeeb; Nolan, Christopher J; Banwell, Cathy; Young, Rosemary; Boisseau, Lynelle; Ingle, Martha; Lithander, Fiona E

2018-01-01

Children of mothers affected by gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) are at higher risk of long-term cardio-metabolic diseases. We explore the diet and physical activity knowledge and practices of Australian-born and overseas-born mothers with GDM history, for their three- to four-year-old children following antenatal health promotion education at a tertiary hospital. We conducted face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with 8 Australian-born and 15 overseas-born mothers with a history of GDM. Findings indicated that mothers of both groups were unaware of the increased health risks of their GDM for their children and could not recall receiving specific dietary or physical activity advice aimed at future child health. Their understanding of the diet and physical activity recommendations was inconsistent. Mothers of both groups expressed concern about the lack of reiteration of child health promotion messages following childbirth, particularly at postnatal follow-up visits. Diet and physical activity of the children of overseas-born mothers were adversely affected by inadequate maternal understanding of the recommendations due to language barriers, and child weight, healthy eating, and physical activity patterns derived from their home countries. We recommend enhanced health education for women with GDM on the future child health risks and their reduction by healthy lifestyle choices. This needs to be culturally relevant and reiterated after pregnancy.

Helping Young Hispanic Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Garcia, Eugene E.; Jensen, Bryant

2007-01-01

Hispanics are the largest and youngest ethnic group in the United States. Moreover, young Hispanic children make up approximately 80 percent of the U.S. English language learner population. They are a heterogeneous group, born both inside and outside the United States and having origins in Mexico, Cuba, Central America, South America, and the…

Integrating Mathematics and Children's Literature for Young Children with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Katherine B.; Gallagher, Peggy A.; Hart, Lynn

2018-01-01

Math skills are critical for children's future success in school, as school-entry math knowledge is the strongest predictor of later academic achievement. Although there is a recent increase of literature on math with young children, there is a scarcity of research related to young children with disabilities. This quasi-experimental study with 50…

Short- and Long-term Pulmonary Outcome of Palivizumab in Children Born Extremely Prematurely.

PubMed

Prais, Dario; Kaplan, Eytan; Klinger, Gil; Mussaffi, Huda; Mei-Zahav, Meir; Bar-Yishay, Ephraim; Stafler, Patrick; Steuer, Guy; Sirota, Lea; Blau, Hannah

2016-03-01

Palivizumab reduces the severity of respiratory syncytial virus infection in premature infants, but whether there is a protective effect beyond the preschool age is unknown. This study sought to assess the short- and long-term effects of palivizumab immunization on respiratory morbidity and pulmonary function at school age in children born extremely prematurely. Infants born before 29 weeks' gestation in 2000 to 2003 were assessed at school age by parental questionnaire, hospital chart review, and lung function tests. Children born immediately before the introduction of routine palivizumab prophylaxis were compared with age-matched children who received palivizumab prophylaxis during the first respiratory syncytial virus season. Sixty-three children with a mean age 8.9 years were included: 30 had received palivizumab and 33 had not (control subjects). The groups were similar in terms of gestational age, birth weight, need for mechanical ventilation, and oxygen supplementation. Fifty-three percent of the palivizumab group, compared with 39% of the control group, had bronchopulmonary dysplasia (P = .14). Wheezing occurred in the first 2 years of life in 27% of the palivizumab group and in 70% of control subjects (P = .008); respective hospitalization rates were 33% and 70% (P = .001). At school age, rates of hyperresponsiveness (provocative concentration leading to a 20% fall in FEV1 < 1 mg/mL) were 33% and 48%, respectively (P = .38). Spirometry, lung volumes, diffusion, and exhaled nitric oxide were within normal limits, with no significant differences between groups. Palivizumab prophylaxis was associated with reduced wheezing episodes and hospitalizations during the first 2 years of life in children born extremely prematurely. However, it did not affect pulmonary outcome at school age. Copyright © 2016 American College of Chest Physicians. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Beverage consumption patterns of children born at different risk of obesity.

PubMed

Kral, Tanja V E; Stunkard, Albert J; Berkowitz, Robert I; Stallings, Virginia A; Moore, Reneé H; Faith, Myles S

2008-08-01

Increased intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice has been associated with overweight in children. This study prospectively assessed beverage consumption patterns and their relationship with weight status in a cohort of children born at different risk for obesity. Participants were children born at low risk (n = 27) or high risk (n = 22) for obesity based on maternal prepregnancy BMI (kg/m(2)). Daily beverage consumption was generated from 3-day food records from children aged 3-6 years and coded into seven beverage categories (milk, fruit juice, fruit drinks, caloric and non-caloric soda, soft drinks including and excluding fruit juice). Child anthropometric measures were assessed yearly. High-risk children consumed a greater percentage of daily calories from beverages at age 3, more fruit juice at ages 3 and 4, more soft drinks (including fruit juice) at ages 3-5, and more soda at age 6 compared to low-risk children. Longitudinal analyses showed that a greater 3-year increase in soda intake was associated with an increased change in waist circumference, whereas a greater increase in milk intake was associated with a reduced change in waist circumference. There was no significant association between change in intake from any of the beverage categories and change in BMI z-score across analyses. Children's familial predisposition to obesity may differentially affect their beverage consumption patterns. Future research should examine the extent to which dietary factors may play a role in pediatric body fat deposition over time.

A prospective, longitudinal study of growth, nutrition and sedentary behaviour in young children with cerebral palsy.

PubMed

Bell, Kristie L; Boyd, Roslyn N; Tweedy, Sean M; Weir, Kelly A; Stevenson, Richard D; Davies, Peter S W

2010-04-06

Cerebral palsy is the most common cause of physical disability in childhood, occurring in one in 500 children. It is caused by a static brain lesion in the neonatal period leading to a range of activity limitations. Oral motor and swallowing dysfunction, poor nutritional status and poor growth are reported frequently in young children with cerebral palsy and may impact detrimentally on physical and cognitive development, health care utilisation, participation and quality of life in later childhood. The impact of modifiable factors (dietary intake and physical activity) on growth, nutritional status, and body composition (taking into account motor severity) in this population is poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the relationship between a range of factors - linear growth, body composition, oral motor and feeding dysfunction, dietary intake, and time spent sedentary (adjusting for motor severity) - and health outcomes, health care utilisation, participation and quality of life in young children with cerebral palsy (from corrected age of 18 months to 5 years). This prospective, longitudinal, population-based study aims to recruit a total of 240 young children with cerebral palsy born in Queensland, Australia between 1st September 2006 and 31st December 2009 (80 from each birth year). Data collection will occur at three time points for each child: 17 - 25 months corrected age, 36 +/- 1 months and 60 +/- 1 months. Outcomes to be assessed include linear growth, body weight, body composition, dietary intake, oral motor function and feeding ability, time spent sedentary, participation, medical resource use and quality of life. This protocol describes a study that will provide the first longitudinal description of the relationship between functional attainment and modifiable lifestyle factors (dietary intake and habitual time spent sedentary) and their impact on the growth, body composition and nutritional status of young children with cerebral palsy across

Music and Movement for Young Children's Healthy Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Izumi-Taylor, Satomi; Morris, Vivian Gunn; Meredith, Cathy D.; Hicks, Claire

2012-01-01

Young children enjoy moving around when they hear music. Children take pleasure in physical activities that contribute to their healthy development. Physical activities are vital to retain healthy bodies, and inactivity is one cause of obesity in young children (Dow, 2010; Izumi-Taylor & Morris, 2007). This article describes how teachers and…

Risk of Childhood Rheumatic and Non-Rheumatic Autoimmune Diseases in Children Born to Women with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

PubMed

Couture, Julie; Bernatsky, Sasha; Scott, Susan; Pineau, Christian A; Vinet, Evelyne

2018-05-23

Several autoimmune diseases have familial aggregation and possibly, common genetic predispositions. In a large population-based study, we evaluated if children born to mothers with SLE have an increased risk of rheumatic and non-rheumatic autoimmune diseases, versus children born to mothers without SLE. Using the "Offspring of SLE mothers Registry (OSLER)", we identified children born live to SLE mothers and their matched controls, and ascertained autoimmune diseases based on ≥1 hospitalization or ≥2 physician visits with a relevant diagnostic code. We adjusted for maternal age, education, race/ethnicity, obstetrical complications, calendar birth year, and sex of child. 509 women with SLE had 719 children, while 5824 matched controls had 8493 children. Mean follow-up was 9.1 (SD 5.8) years. Children born to mothers with SLE had similar frequency of rheumatic autoimmune diagnoses (0.14%, 95% CI 0.01, 0.90) versus controls (0.19%, 95% CI 0.11, 0.32). There was a trend towards more non-rheumatic autoimmune diseases in SLE offspring (1.11%, 95% CI 0.52, 2.27) versus controls (0.48%, 95% CI 0.35, 0.66). In multivariate analyses, we did not see a clear increase in rheumatic autoimmune disease (OR 0.71, 95% CI 0.11-4.82) but children born to mothers with SLE had a substantially increased risk of non-rheumatic autoimmune disease versus controls (OR 2.30, 95% CI 1.06-5.03). Although the vast majority of offspring have no autoimmune disease, children born to women with SLE may have an increased risk of non-rheumatic autoimmune diseases, versus controls. Additional studies assessing offspring through to adulthood would be additionally enlightening. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Overnight Custody Arrangements, Attachment, and Adjustment Among Very Young Children

PubMed Central

Tornello, Samantha L.; Emery, Robert; Rowen, Jenna; Potter, Daniel; Ocker, Bailey; Xu, Yishan

2014-01-01

Large numbers of infants and toddlers have parents who live apart due to separation, divorce, or nonmarital/noncohabiting child-bearing, yet this important topic, especially the controversial issue of frequent overnights with nonresidential parents, is understudied. The authors analyzed data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal investigation of children born to primarily low-income, racial/ethnic minority parents that is representative of 20 U.S. cities with populations over 200,000. Among young children whose parents lived apart, 6.9% of infants (birth to age 1) and 5.3% of toddlers (ages 1 to 3) spent an average of at least 1 overnight per week with their nonresident parent. An additional 6.8% of toddlers spent 35% – 70% of overnights with nonresident parents. Frequent overnights were significantly associated with attachment insecurity among infants, but the relationship was less clear for toddlers. Attachment insecurity predicted adjustment problems at ages 3 and 5, but frequent overnights were not directly linked with adjustment problems at older ages. PMID:25635146

Overnight Custody Arrangements, Attachment, and Adjustment Among Very Young Children.

PubMed

Tornello, Samantha L; Emery, Robert; Rowen, Jenna; Potter, Daniel; Ocker, Bailey; Xu, Yishan

2013-08-01

Large numbers of infants and toddlers have parents who live apart due to separation, divorce, or nonmarital/noncohabiting child-bearing, yet this important topic, especially the controversial issue of frequent overnights with nonresidential parents, is understudied. The authors analyzed data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a longitudinal investigation of children born to primarily low-income, racial/ethnic minority parents that is representative of 20 U.S. cities with populations over 200,000. Among young children whose parents lived apart, 6.9% of infants (birth to age 1) and 5.3% of toddlers (ages 1 to 3) spent an average of at least 1 overnight per week with their nonresident parent. An additional 6.8% of toddlers spent 35% - 70% of overnights with nonresident parents. Frequent overnights were significantly associated with attachment insecurity among infants, but the relationship was less clear for toddlers. Attachment insecurity predicted adjustment problems at ages 3 and 5, but frequent overnights were not directly linked with adjustment problems at older ages.

Young Children and Trauma: Intervention and Treatment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osofsky, Joy D., Ed.

2004-01-01

Recent years have seen significant advances in knowledge about the effects of exposure to psychological trauma on young children from birth to age 5. This volume brings together leading experts to address practical considerations in working with traumatized young children and their caregivers. State-of-the-art assessment and treatment approaches…

Outdoor Experiences for Young Children. ERIC Digest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rivkin, Mary S.

This digest examines the value of outdoor experience for young children, reasons for its decline, ways to enhance school play spaces, and aspects of developmentally appropriate outdoor environments. Young children appear to benefit from being outdoors and especially need the broad experiential base provided by being outdoors. The richness and…

Teaching Play Skills to Young Children with Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jung, Sunhwa; Sainato, Diane M.

2013-01-01

Background: Play is critical for the development of young children and is an important part of their daily routine. However, children with autism often exhibit deficits in play skills and engage in stereotypic behaviour. We reviewed studies to identify effective instructional strategies for teaching play skills to young children with autism.…

Young Children's Behaviour: Practical Approaches for Caregivers and Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Porter, Louise

Noting that adults caring for young children often find themselves responding to children's misbehavior in ways contradictory to their overall goals of children's autonomy and self-management, this book provides practical child-centered suggestions for responding to young children's disruptive behavior and suggests behavior management techniques…

The end of a dogma: the safety of doxycycline use in young children for malaria treatment.

PubMed

Gaillard, Tiphaine; Briolant, Sébastien; Madamet, Marylin; Pradines, Bruno

2017-04-13

Anti-malarial drug resistance to chloroquine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine has spread from Southeast Asia to Africa. Furthermore, the recent emergence of resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) in Southeast Asia highlights the need to identify new anti-malarial drugs. Doxycycline is recommended for malaria chemoprophylaxis for travel in endemic areas, or in combination with the use of quinine for malaria treatment when ACT is unavailable or when the treatment of severe malaria with artesunate fails. However, doxycycline is not used in young children under 8 years of age due to its contraindication due to the risk of yellow tooth discolouration and dental enamel hypoplasia. Doxycycline was developed after tetracycline and was labelled with the same side-effects as the earlier tetracyclines. However, recent studies report little or no effects of doxycycline on tooth staining or dental enamel hypoplasia in children under 8 years of age. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have recommended the use of doxycycline for the treatment of acute and chronic Q fever and tick-borne rickettsial diseases in young children. It is time to rehabilitate doxycycline and to recommend it for malaria treatment in children under 8 years of age.

Motor learning and working memory in children born preterm: a systematic review.

PubMed

Jongbloed-Pereboom, Marjolein; Janssen, Anjo J W M; Steenbergen, Bert; Nijhuis-van der Sanden, Maria W G

2012-04-01

Children born preterm have a higher risk for developing motor, cognitive, and behavioral problems. Motor problems can occur in combination with working memory problems, and working memory is important for explicit learning of motor skills. The relation between motor learning and working memory has never been reviewed. The goal of this review was to provide an overview of motor learning, visual working memory and the role of working memory on motor learning in preterm children. A systematic review conducted in four databases identified 38 relevant articles, which were evaluated for methodological quality. Only 4 of 38 articles discussed motor learning in preterm children. Thirty-four studies reported on visual working memory; preterm birth affected performance on visual working memory tests. Information regarding motor learning and the role of working memory on the different components of motor learning was not available. Future research should address this issue. Insight in the relation between motor learning and visual working memory may contribute to the development of evidence based intervention programs for children born preterm. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language Flowering, Language Empowering for Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honig, Alice Sterling

Based upon the view that parents, home visitors, and teachers in early childhood settings need tools for empowering young children to develop language, this paper examines what adults need to know to guide young children's language development and presents 20 suggestions for enhancing language growth. The paper maintains that adults need to know…

Risk of Allergic Rhinitis, Allergic Conjunctivitis, and Eczema in Children Born to Mothers with Gum Inflammation during Pregnancy.

PubMed

Hsieh, Vivian Chia-Rong; Liu, Chin-Chen; Hsiao, Yu-Chen; Wu, Trong-Neng

2016-01-01

Despite links between maternal and child health status, evidence on the association between gum infection in pregnant mothers and childhood allergies is scarce. We aim to evaluate the risk of developing allergy in children born to periodontal mothers in a nationwide study. We conducted a 9-year population-based, retrospective cohort study using Taiwan's National Health Insurance database. A study cohort of 42,217 newborns born to mothers with periodontal disease during pregnancy was identified in 2001 and matched with 42,334 babies born to mothers without any infection (control) by mother's age at delivery and baby sex. With a follow-up period from 2001 to 2010, we observed the incidence of allergic rhinitis (AR), allergic conjunctivitis (AC), and eczema in these children. Cox proportional hazards regression models were performed with premature deaths as competing risk for the estimation of allergic disease risks. Nine-year cumulative incidences were the highest among children born to periodontal mothers; they reached 46.8%, 24.2%, and 40.4% (vs. 39.5%, 18.3% and 34.8% in control) for AR, AC, and eczema, respectively. Our results showed moderately increased risks for the allergies in children born to periodontal mothers relative to their matched non-inflammatory control (adjusted HRs: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.15-1.20; 1.27, 1.24-1.31; 1.14, 1.12-1.17, respectively). Because the impact of food consumption and living environment cannot be considered using insurance data, we attempted to control it by adjusting for parental income and mother's residential area. Overall cumulative incidence and risks of children born to periodontal mothers for AR, AC, and eczema are significantly higher than those born to non-inflammatory mothers. Gum infection in women during pregnancy is an independent risk factor for allergic diseases in children, thus its intergenerational consequences should be considered in gestational care.

From Listening to Understanding: Interpreting Young Children's Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colliver, Yeshe

2017-01-01

As young children's perspectives are increasingly "taken seriously" across disciplines, the pursuit of authentic and ethical research with young children has become the subject of recent discussion. Much of this relates to listening "authentically" to (or understanding) young children, focusing on research design, ethics,…

Neurodevelopmental disabilities and special care of 5-year-old children born before 33 weeks of gestation (the EPIPAGE study): a longitudinal cohort study.

PubMed

Larroque, Béatrice; Ancel, Pierre-Yves; Marret, Stéphane; Marchand, Laetitia; André, Monique; Arnaud, Catherine; Pierrat, Véronique; Rozé, Jean-Christophe; Messer, Jean; Thiriez, Gérard; Burguet, Antoine; Picaud, Jean-Charles; Bréart, Gérard; Kaminski, Monique

2008-03-08

The increasing survival rates of children who are born very preterm raise issues about the risks of neurological disabilities and cognitive dysfunction. We aimed to investigate neurodevelopmental outcome and use of special health care at 5 years of age in a population-based cohort of very preterm children. We included all 2901 livebirths between 22 and 32 completed weeks of gestation from nine regions in France in Jan 1-Dec 31, 1997, and a reference group of 667 children from the same regions born at 39-40 weeks of gestation. At 5 years of age, children had a medical examination and a cognitive assessment with the Kaufman assessment battery for children (K-ABC), with scores on the mental processing composite (MPC) scale recorded. Data for health-care use were collected from parents. Severe disability was defined as non-ambulatory cerebral palsy, MPC score less than 55, or severe visual or hearing deficiency; moderate deficiency as cerebral palsy walking with aid or MPC score of 55-69; and minor disability as cerebral palsy walking without aid, MPC score of 70-84, or visual deficit (<3/10 for one eye). In total, 1817 (77%) of the 2357 surviving children born very preterm had a medical assessment at 5 years and 396 (60%) of 664 in the reference group. Cerebral palsy was diagnosed in 159 (9%) of children born very preterm. Scores for MPC were available for 1534 children born very preterm: 503 (32%) had an MPC score less than 85 and 182 (12%) had an MPC score less than 70. Of the 320 children in the reference group, the corresponding values were 37 (12%) and 11 (3%), respectively. In the very preterm group, 83 (5%) had severe disability, 155 (9%) moderate disability, and 398 (25%) minor disability. Disability was highest in children born at 24-28 completed weeks of gestation (195 children [49%]), but the absolute number of children with disabilities was higher for children born at 29-32 weeks (441 children [36%]). Special health-care resources were used by 188 (42%) of

Risk of Autism Spectrum Disorders in Children Born to Mothers With Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systematic Literature Review.

PubMed

Wojcik, Sophie; Bernatsky, Sasha; Platt, Robert W; Pineau, Christian A; Clarke, Ann E; Fombonne, Éric; Bérard, Anick; Vinet, Évelyne

2017-12-01

There is recent evidence to suggest that in utero exposure to maternal antibodies and cytokines is an important risk factor for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). We aimed to systematically review the risk of ASDs in children born to mothers with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) compared to children born to mothers without RA. We conducted a systematic review of original articles using the electronic databases PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science. Our literature search yielded a total of 70 articles. Of the potentially relevant studies retrieved, 67 were excluded for lack of relevance and/or because they did not report original data. Three studies were included in the final analysis. A case-control study found no difference in the prevalence of RA in mothers of children with ASDs versus control mothers. Another case-control study showed a statistically significant 8-fold increase in autoimmune disorders, including RA, in mothers of offspring with ASDs compared to controls. Forty-six percent of offspring with ASDs had a first-degree relative with RA, compared to 26% of controls. And in a population-based cohort study, investigators observed an increased risk of ASDs in children with a maternal history of RA compared to children born to unaffected mothers. These studies had methodologic limitations: none controlled for medication exposures, only 1 controlled for obstetric complications and considered the timing of RA diagnosis in relation to pregnancy, and all but 1 used a case-control study design. Observational studies suggest a potentially increased risk of ASDs in children born to mothers with RA compared to children born to mothers without RA, although data are limited. © 2017, American College of Rheumatology.

Neonatal morbidities and developmental delay in moderately preterm-born children.

PubMed

Kerstjens, Jorien M; Bocca-Tjeertes, Inger F; de Winter, Andrea F; Reijneveld, Sijmen A; Bos, Arend F

2012-08-01

Children born moderately preterm (32-35(6/7) weeks' gestation) are at increased risk of both neonatal morbidities and developmental delays in early childhood. It is unknown whether neonatal morbidities contribute to the increased risk of developmental delay. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of neonatal morbidities after moderately preterm birth on development at preschool age. In a community-based, stratified cohort, parents of 832 moderately preterm children born in 2002 or 2003 completed the Ages and Stage Questionnaire when their child was 43 to 49 months old. Data on Apgar scores, asphyxia, tertiary NICU admission, hospital transfer, circulatory insufficiency, hypoglycemia, septicemia, mechanical ventilation, continuous positive airway pressure, apneas, caffeine treatment, and hyperbilirubinemia were obtained from medical records. We assessed associations of neonatal characteristics with developmental delay, adjusted for gender, small-for-gestational-age status, gestational age, and maternal education. Hypoglycemia and asphyxia were associated with developmental delay; odds ratios (ORs) were 2.42 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.23-4.77) and 3.18 (95% CI: 1.01-10.0), respectively. Tertiary NICU admission and hyperbilirubinemia had positive but statistically borderline nonsignificant associations with developmental delay: ORs were 1.74 (95% CI: 0.96-3.15) and 1.52 (95% CI: 0.94-2.46), respectively. No other neonatal morbidities were associated with developmental delay. In multivariate analyses, only hypoglycemia was associated with developmental delay (OR: 2.19; 95% CI: 1.08-4.46). In moderately preterm-born children, only hypoglycemia increased the risk of developmental delay at preschool age. A concerted effort to prevent hypoglycemia might enhance developmental outcome in this group.

Philosophy for Young Children: A Practical Guide

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gaut, Berys; Gaut, Morag

2011-01-01

Co-written by a professor of philosophy and a practising primary school teacher, "Philosophy for Young Children" is a concise, practical guide for teachers. It contains detailed session plans for 36 philosophical enquiries--enough for a year's work--that have all been successfully tried, tested and enjoyed with young children from the age of three…

Stravinsky's "Firebird" and Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roebuck, Edith

1999-01-01

Describes how the young children of the Early Learning Center in the Chelsea (Massachusetts) school district learned about Igor Stravinsky's ballet suite, "The Firebird." Explains that children in three kindergarten classes depicted the ballet's characters in a participatory performance. Highlights some qualitative observations. (CMK)

Seminar on young child nutrition: improving nutrition and health status of young children in indonesia.

PubMed

Isabelle, Mia; Chan, Pauline

2011-01-01

The Seminar on Young Child Nutrition: Improving Nutrition and Health Status of Young Children in Indonesia held in Jakarta on November 2009 reviewed the current nutritional and health status of young children in Indonesia and identified key nutrient deficiencies affecting their optimal growth. The continuation of child growth from fetal stage is of paramount importance; and maternal and child health should be a central consideration in policy and strategy development. Clinical management of nutrient deficiency and malnutrition, as well as strategies and education to improve feeding practices of young Indonesian children were discussed in the seminar. Relevant experiences, approaches and strategies from France, New Zealand and Malaysia were also shared and followed with discussion on how regulatory systems can support the development of health policy for young children. This report highlights important information presented at the seminar.

Neuromotor Development of Children Aged 6 and 7 Years Born before the 30th Week Gestation.

PubMed

Majewska, Joanna; Zajkiewicz, Katarzyna; Wacław-Abdul, Kamila; Baran, Joanna; Szymczyk, Daniel

2018-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the level of neuromotor function and somatic development in 6- and 7-year-old children born before the 30th week gestation with that in full-term children at the same age, as well as the correlation between prematurity and motor development. The study group consisted of prematurely born 40 children. Their mean gestational age at birth was 27.8 ± 1.6 weeks (range 24-30 weeks). The control group consisted of 40 healthy children born with normal birth weight (>2500 g). The neuromotor function was assessed using Touwen neurological examination criteria. During the examination, the attention was focused on the hand preference, laterality, synkinesis, and asymmetry. In addition, children's weight, height, and BMI index were measured. Premature children showed much worse results than full-term ones in hand function ( p < 0,001). They obtained the best results in paper tearing while crossing the body midline turned out to be the most difficult. Considering the quality of walking, the biggest difficulty for the premature children was to walk backwards along the straight line while during normal walking they showed the best results. The results for the muscle tone subcategory in the study group were also significantly worse than those in control group ( p < 0,001), as well as the total outcome for the movement coordination and diadochokinesis subcategories ( p < 0,001). The nondisabled, prematurely born children have significantly lower average outcomes regarding hand function, quality of walking, muscle tone, coordination, and diadochokinesis at age of six to seven, compared to the full-term peers.

Multivitamin supplementation improves haematologic status in children born to HIV-positive women in Tanzania

PubMed Central

Liu, Enju; Duggan, Christopher; Manji, Karim P; Kupka, Roland; Aboud, Said; Bosch, Ronald J; Kisenge, Rodrick R; Okuma, James; Fawzi, Wafaie W

2013-01-01

Introduction Anaemia is prevalent among children born to HIV-positive women, and it is associated with adverse effects on cognitive and motor development, growth, and increased risks of morbidity and mortality. Objective To examine the effect of daily multivitamin supplementation on haematologic status and mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV through breastfeeding. Methods A total of 2387 infants born to HIV-positive women from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, and provided a daily oral supplement of multivitamins (vitamin B complex, C and E) or placebo at age 6 weeks for 24 months. Among them, 2008 infants provided blood samples and had haemoglobin concentrations measured at baseline and during a follow-up period. Anaemia was defined as haemoglobin concentrations<11 g/dL and severe anaemia<8.5 g/dL. Results Haemoglobin concentrations among children in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the placebo group at 12 (9.77 vs. 9.64 g/dL, p=0.03), 18 (9.76 vs. 9.57 g/dL, p=0.004), and 24 months (9.93 vs. 9.75 g/dL, p=0.02) of follow-up. Compared to those in the placebo group, children in the treatment group had a 12% lower risk of anaemia (hazard ratio (HR): 0.88; 95% CI: 0.79–0.99; p=0.03). The treatment was associated with a 28% reduced risk of severe anaemia among children born to women without anaemia (HR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.56–0.92; p=0.008), but not among those born to women with anaemia (HR: 1.10; 95% CI: 0.79–1.54; p=0.57; p for interaction=0.007). One thousand seven hundred fifty three infants who tested HIV-negative at baseline and had HIV testing during follow-up were included in the analysis for MTCT of HIV. No association was found between multivitamin supplements and MTCT of HIV. Conclusions Multivitamin supplements improve haematologic status among children born to HIV-positive women. Further trials focusing on anaemia among HIV-exposed children are warranted in

Multivitamin supplementation improves haematologic status in children born to HIV-positive women in Tanzania.

PubMed

Liu, Enju; Duggan, Christopher; Manji, Karim P; Kupka, Roland; Aboud, Said; Bosch, Ronald J; Kisenge, Rodrick R; Okuma, James; Fawzi, Wafaie W

2013-08-13

Anaemia is prevalent among children born to HIV-positive women, and it is associated with adverse effects on cognitive and motor development, growth, and increased risks of morbidity and mortality. To examine the effect of daily multivitamin supplementation on haematologic status and mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV through breastfeeding. A total of 2387 infants born to HIV-positive women from Dar es Salaam, Tanzania were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, and provided a daily oral supplement of multivitamins (vitamin B complex, C and E) or placebo at age 6 weeks for 24 months. Among them, 2008 infants provided blood samples and had haemoglobin concentrations measured at baseline and during a follow-up period. Anaemia was defined as haemoglobin concentrations <11 g/dL and severe anaemia <8.5 g/dL. Haemoglobin concentrations among children in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the placebo group at 12 (9.77 vs. 9.64 g/dL, p=0.03), 18 (9.76 vs. 9.57 g/dL, p=0.004), and 24 months (9.93 vs. 9.75 g/dL, p=0.02) of follow-up. Compared to those in the placebo group, children in the treatment group had a 12% lower risk of anaemia (hazard ratio (HR): 0.88; 95% CI: 0.79-0.99; p=0.03). The treatment was associated with a 28% reduced risk of severe anaemia among children born to women without anaemia (HR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.56-0.92; p=0.008), but not among those born to women with anaemia (HR: 1.10; 95% CI: 0.79-1.54; p=0.57; p for interaction=0.007). One thousand seven hundred fifty three infants who tested HIV-negative at baseline and had HIV testing during follow-up were included in the analysis for MTCT of HIV. No association was found between multivitamin supplements and MTCT of HIV. Multivitamin supplements improve haematologic status among children born to HIV-positive women. Further trials focusing on anaemia among HIV-exposed children are warranted in the context of antiretroviral therapy.

Supporting Young Artists: The Development of the Visual Arts in Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Epstein, Ann S.; Trimis, Eli

Based on the view that art should be a vital component of young childrens experiences, this book examines the High/Scope approach to the visual arts for young children in early care and education settings and highlights an in-depth studio approach to developing art. The book is organized in two parts. Chapters in Part 1 present the High/Scope…

Social norms of accompanied young children and observed crossing behaviors.

PubMed

Rosenbloom, Tova; Sapir-Lavid, Yael; Hadari-Carmi, Ofri

2009-01-01

Social norms for accompanied young children and crossing behaviors were examined in two studies conducted in an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Israel. In Study 1, road behaviors of young children crossing with and without accompaniment and older children were observed, and the actual social norm for accompanied school children younger than 9-years-old was examined. In Study 2, the perceived norm of accompaniment was tested by questionnaires. Young children who crossed without accompaniment exhibited poorer crossing skills compared to older children and to young children crossing with accompaniment. In the four locations observed, the actual accompaniment rate ranged between 15%-60%. The perceived social norm for child accompaniment was lower than the actual norm. The discussion refers to both theoretical issues and their practical implications.

Evolving Identities among Russian-Born Buriat Mongolian Children in a Chinese Bilingual School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sartor, Valerie

2016-01-01

This article addresses identity issues among a specific group of Indigenous youth, young Buriat Mongolian students, born in Russia, who struggled to understand their sense of cultural identity while living and studying in Chinese Inner Mongolia. This qualitative research project employed ethnographic methodology. Sociocultural theory, specifically…

What Do Young Children Dream about?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honig, Alice Sterling; Nealis, Arlene L.

2012-01-01

Young children's dreams can be a way for teachers and caregivers to share with children and an opportunity for children to describe and even draw dreams. In two different preschool settings, in two different geographical locales, 94 children, aged 3-5 years, shared 266 dreams with a trusted, familiar teacher. Dreams were coded anonymously. The…

Sixth Sense: The Disabled Children and Young People's Participation Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murray, Rosemary

2012-01-01

The Disabled Children and Young Peoples Participation Project (DCYPPP) was established by Barnardos (Northern Ireland) in 2002 to explore ways of involving children and young people with disabilities in decision-making processes within Children's Services Planning of the Health and Social Services Board. Over 200 young people have participated in…

Levels of Urbanization and Parental Education in Relation to the Mortality Risk of Young Children.

PubMed

Fang, Hsin-Sheng; Chen, Wei-Ling; Chen, Chiu-Ying; Jia, Chun-Hua; Li, Chung-Yi; Hou, Wen-Hsuan

2015-07-08

The establishment of the National Health Insurance program in Taiwan in 1995 effectively removed the financial barrier to access health care services of Taiwanese people. This population-based cohort study aimed to determine the independent and joint effects of parental education and area urbanization on the mortality risk among children under the universal health insurance coverage in Taiwan since 1995. We linked 1,501,620 births from 1996 to 2000 to the Taiwan Death Registry to estimate the neonatal, infant, and under-five mortality rates, according to the levels of parental education and urbanization of residential areas. We used a logistic regression model that considers data clustering to estimate the independent and joint effects. Lower levels of parental education and area urbanization exerted an independent effect of mortality on young children, with a stronger magnitude noted for areas with lower levels of urbanization. Children whose parents had lower levels of education and who were born in areas with lower levels of urbanization experienced the highest risk for neonatal (odds ratio (OR) = 1.60, 95% CI = 1.46-1.76), infant (OR = 1.58, 95% CI = 1.48-1.70), and under-five (OR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.61-1.82) mortality. Even with universal health insurance coverage, lower levels of area urbanization and parental education still exerted independent and joint effects on mortality in young children. This finding implies the inadequate accessibility to health care resources for children from socially disadvantaged families and less urbanized areas.

Neuropsychological assessment and perinatal risk: A study amongst very premature born 4- and 5-year old children.

PubMed

Sanchez-Joya, Mª Del Mar; Sanchez-Labraca, Nuria; Roldan-Tapia, Mª Dolores; Moral Rodríguez, Teresa; Ramos Lizana, Julio; Roman, Pablo

2017-10-01

Prematurity and its consequences are serious problems that can result in numerous neurosensory disabilities and cerebral cognitive dysfunctions. The Perinatal Risk Index (PERI) might provide a predictive measure of these problems. This study compared the cognitive development of prematurely born children at 4 and 5 years of age with age-matched peers born at term. The secondary objective was to determine whether a correlation exists between perinatal risk and performance on neuropsychological tests among premature children. A total of 54 children between four and five years of age were evaluated; 27 were born very premature (premature group; PG), and 27 were born at term (term group; TG). Executive function, attention, memory, language, visual perception, and spatial structuring were evaluated. Subtests from the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, the Rey Complex Figure Test, the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities, the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Test A, Trails A and B, the spatial structuring questionnaire from the Child Neuropsychological Maturity Questionnaire, and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children were used. A PERI score was also obtained for the PG. The PG showed significantly lower scores than the TG in all the studied cognitive domains. Visual-perceptive scores were significantly and negatively correlated with the PERI scores of the PG. The PG showed neurocognitive deficits compared with the TG. The PERI can be used to predict the development of visual-perceptive abilities in children between four and five years of age. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Grief: Helping Young Children Cope

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wood, Frances B.

2008-01-01

In their role as caregivers supporting the children they teach, it is important for teachers to understand the grieving process and recognize symptoms of grief. The author explains Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's five stages of grief and offers 10 classroom strategies to help young children cope with their feelings.

Providing Rich Art Activities for Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulcahey, Christine

2009-01-01

Using works of art with young children is a perfect way to bridge the gap between art activities that are too open or too closed. Teachers of young children sometimes try to find a middle ground by allowing free painting time at an easel in addition to recipe-oriented activities such as putting together precut shapes to create a spider or an apple…

Different sex ratios of children born to Indian and Pakistani immigrants in Norway

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background A low female-to-male ratio has been observed in different Asian countries, but this phenomenon has not been well studied among immigrants living in Western societies. In this study, we investigated whether a low female-to-male ratio exists among Indian and Pakistani immigrants living in Norway. In particular, we investigated whether the determination of sex via ultrasound examination, a common obstetric procedure that has been used in Norway since the early 1980 s, has influenced the female-to-male ratio among children born to parents of Indian or Pakistani origin. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort study of live births in mothers of Indian (n = 1597) and Pakistani (n = 5617) origin. Data were obtained from "Statistics Norway" and the female-to-male (F/M) sex ratio was evaluated among 21,325 children born, in increasing birth order, during three stratified periods (i.e., 1969-1986, 1987-1996, and 1997-2005). Results A significant low female-to-male sex ratio was observed among children in the third and fourth birth order (sex ratio 65; 95% CI 51-80) from mothers of Indian origin who gave birth after 1987. Sex ratios did not deviate from the expected natural variation in the Indian cohort from 1969 to 1986, and remained stable in the Pakistani cohort during the entire study period. However, the female-to-male sex ratio seemed less skewed in recent years (i.e., 1997-2005). Conclusion Significant differences were observed in the sex ratio of children born to mothers of Indian origin compared with children born to mothers of Pakistani origin. A skewed number of female births among higher birth orders (i.e., third or later) may partly reflect an increase in sex-selective abortion among mothers of Indian origin, although the numbers are too small to draw firm conclusions. Further research is needed to explain the observed differences in the female-to-male ratio among members of these ethnic groups who reside in Norway. PMID:20682027

Executive Function Computerized Training in Very Preterm-Born Children: A Pilot Study.

PubMed

Aarnoudse-Moens, Cornelieke S H; Twilhaar, E Sabrina; Oosterlaan, Jaap; van Veen, Heske G; Prins, Pier J M; van Kaam, Anton H L C; van Wassenaer-Leemhuis, Aleid G

2018-06-01

Attention problems are one of the most pronounced and documented consequences of very preterm birth (gestational age ≤32 weeks). However, up to now, there is no research published on suitable interventions at school age aimed to overcome these problems. Research in this population did show that executive functions (EFs) are strongly associated with inattention. BrainGame Brian is a newly developed computerized training, in which, in 25 training sessions, the core EFs, including working memory, impulse control, and cognitive flexibility, are trained. This pilot study aimed to examine the feasibility of studying BrainGame Brian in very preterm-born children with attention problems. Pilot feasibility intervention study with one baseline and one follow-up assessment. Feasibility was measured by the participation rate, dropout rate, and user experiences with regard to effort, training characteristics, and recommendation to others. From a larger cohort study, 15 very preterm-born children at age 10 years with parent-reported attention problems on the Child Behavior Checklist/6-18 years were invited to participate in this pilot study. BrainGame Brian was performed for a period of 6 weeks. Training outcome measures included visual working memory, impulse control, cognitive flexibility, speed variability, and parent-rated attention, for which pre- and post-training differences were examined at the group level by the Wilcoxon signed-rank test as well as for each individual child separately by the reliable change index. Twelve of 15 children and their parents agreed to participate and 11 children successfully completed BrainGame Brian in the 6-week period. Parents were positive about training characteristics and lack of interference with schooling, but scored the effort as high. We found clinically significant changes in visual working memory and speed variability in post-training assessments. BrainGame Brian is a feasible intervention for very preterm-born children with

Childhood immunizations in China: disparities in health care access in children born to North Korean refugees.

PubMed

Chung, Hyun Jung; Han, Seung Hyun; Kim, Hyerang; Finkelstein, Julia L

2016-04-13

Childhood immunization rates are at an all-time high globally, and national data for China suggests close to universal coverage. Refugees from North Korea and their children may have more limited health care access in China due to their legal status. However, there is no data on immunization rates or barriers to coverage in this population. This study was conducted to determine the rates and correlates of immunizations in children (≥1 year) born to North Korean refugees in Yanbien, China. Child immunization data was obtained from vaccination cards and caregiver self-report for 7 vaccines and 1:3:3:3:1 series. Age-appropriate vaccination rates of refugee children were compared to Chinese and migrant children using a goodness-of-fit test. Logistic regression was used to determine correlates of immunization coverage for each vaccine and the 1:3:3:3:1 series. Age-appropriate immunization coverage rates were significantly lower in children born to North Korean refugees (12.1-97.8 %), compared to Chinese (99 %) and migrant (95 %) children. Increased father's age and having a sibling predicted significantly lower vaccination rates. Children born to North Korean refugees had significantly lower immunization rates, compared to Chinese or migrant children. Further research is needed to examine barriers of health care access in this high-risk population.

Language and Reading Skills in School-Aged Children and Adolescents Born Preterm Are Associated with White Matter Properties on Diffusion Tensor Imaging

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Feldman, Heidi M.; Lee, Eliana S.; Yeatman, Jason D.; Yeom, Kristen W.

2012-01-01

Children born preterm are at risk for deficits in language and reading. They are also at risk for injury to the white matter of the brain. The goal of this study was to determine whether performance in language and reading skills would be associated with white matter properties in children born preterm and full-term. Children born before 36 weeks…

Hydroxyurea Use in Young Children With Sickle Cell Anemia in New York State.

PubMed

Anders, David G; Tang, Fei; Ledneva, Tatania; Caggana, Michele; Green, Nancy S; Wang, Ying; Sturman, Lawrence S

2016-07-01

This study examined hydroxyurea usage in young children with sickle cell anemia within New York State (NYS). The cohort was 273 children with sickle cell anemia born in NYS in 2006-2009 and enrolled essentially continuously in Medicaid for the first 4 years of life. Medicaid data were used to examine hydroxyurea usage in this group by age at first prescription fill, persistence, region, treatment institution, and year. Log-binomial regression models were used to estimate the likelihood of receiving hydroxyurea treatment. Data from birth through 2014 for all members of the study group were assembled and analyzed in 2015. About 25% of the cohort had at least one filled hydroxyurea prescription by their fifth birthday, and nearly 40% by the end of the study period. The mean proportion of days covered for the first year of therapy was 56.3%. Adherence was also assessed by calculating medication possession ratios for individual treatment periods. Slightly more than one third of treated children showed 80% coverage by these measures. There was a consistent, but not statistically significant, trend toward younger age at first fill. Significant regional and treatment center differences in initiation of hydroxyurea use, but not in persistence after initiation, were noted among NYS centers. Subsequent to clinical studies demonstrating safety, current NYS-wide use of hydroxyurea in young children with sickle cell anemia appears to be widespread and increasing. However, practice differences between treatment centers and inadequate adherence may limit the full disease-modifying effects of hydroxyurea. Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Teaching Chess to Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bankauskas, Deborah

2000-01-01

Presents suggestions for teaching chess to young children as part of the problem-solving component of a kindergarten mathematics curriculum. Discusses the introduction of pairs of chess characters, playing challenge games with teachers to enhance skill development, and writing down the rules of the game. Notes that children's problem-solving and…

Young Children's Language of Togetherness.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Haan, Dorian; Singer, Elly

2001-01-01

Discusses verbal strategies used by young children to express and construct a sense of togetherness. Presents the case study of one child, 3-5 years old, in his interactions with other children and teachers. Describes three general mechanisms for expressing togetherness: expression of common ground, of cooperation, and of care. (JPB)

Supporting Young Children with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hebbeler, Kathleen; Spiker, Donna

2016-01-01

What do we know about young children with delays and disabilities, and how can we help them succeed in prekindergarten through third grade? To begin with, Kathleen Hebbeler and Donna Spiker write, identifying children with delays and disabilities to receive specialized services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act poses several…

Young Children Being Rhythmically Playful: Creating "Musike" Together

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alcock, Sophie

2008-01-01

This article explores young children's rhythmic, musical, aesthetic and playful creative communication in an early childhood education centre. Young children's communication is musically rhythmic and social. The data, presented as "events", formed part of an ethnographic-inspired study conducted by the researcher as a participant observer.…

Frontal Electroencephalogram Asymmetry, Salivary Cortisol, and Internalizing Behavior Problems in Young Adults Who Were Born at Extremely Low Birth Weight

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmidt, Louis A.; Miskovic, Vladimir; Boyle, Michael; Saigal, Saroj

2010-01-01

The authors examined internalizing behavior problems at middle childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood and brain-based measures of stress vulnerability in 154 right-handed, nonimpaired young adults (M age = 23 years): 71 (30 males, 41 females) born at extremely low birth weight (ELBW; less than 1,000 g) and 83 (35 males, 48 females) controls…

Beverage Consumption Patterns of Children Born at Different Risk of Obesity

PubMed Central

Kral, Tanja V.E.; Stunkard, Albert J.; Berkowitz, Robert I.; Stallings, Virginia A.; Moore, Reneé H.; Faith, Myles S.

2010-01-01

Background Increased intake of sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice has been associated with overweight in children. Objective This study prospectively assessed beverage consumption patterns and their relationship with weight status in a cohort of children born at different risk for obesity. Methods and Procedures Participants were children born at low risk (n = 27) or high risk (n = 22) for obesity based on maternal prepregnancy BMI (kg/m2). Daily beverage consumption was generated from 3-day food records from children aged 3–6 years and coded into seven beverage categories (milk, fruit juice, fruit drinks, caloric and noncaloric soda, soft drinks including and excluding fruit juice). Child anthropometric measures were assessed yearly. Results High-risk children consumed a greater percentage of daily calories from beverages at age 3, more fruit juice at ages 3 and 4, more soft drinks (including fruit juice) at ages 3–5, and more soda at age 6 compared to low-risk children. Longitudinal analyses showed that a greater 3-year increase in soda intake was associated with an increased change in waist circumference, whereas a greater increase in milk intake was associated with a reduced change in waist circumference. There was no significant association between change in intake from any of the beverage categories and change in BMI z-score across analyses. Discussion Children’s familial predisposition to obesity may differentially affect their beverage consumption patterns. Future research should examine the extent to which dietary factors may play a role in pediatric body fat deposition over time. PMID:18535546

Term infants born at home in Peru are less likely to be hospitalised in the neonatal period than those born in hospital.

PubMed

Lavin, Tina; Preen, David B

2017-08-01

More than 50% of women worldwide give birth at home, but little is known about home birth and subsequent neonatal hospitalisation. The objective of the study was to investigate home birth and neonatal hospitalisation of term neonates in Peru. The relationship between birth setting [home - with or without skilled birth attendant (SBA), health centre, hospital] and neonatal hospitalisation (n = 1656) and incubator care (n = 1651) was investigated using data from the 2002 Young Lives Study. Infants were sampled from 20 sentinel sites across Peru. At each sentinel site 100 households with children aged 6-18 months were randomly sampled (therefore the sample only captured children surviving to 6 months of age). Multivariate regression modelling was used with models adjusted for a range of demographic and clinical factors. After adjustment, the odds of hospitalisation were lower in neonates born at home (with SBA OR 0.20, 95% CI 0.0-0.8, p = 0.021; without SBA OR = 0.4, 95% CI 0.2-0.7, p = 0.002) than in those born in hospital. Socio-demographic factors such as ethnicity, rural living, education, socio-economic status and access to transport did not influence neonatal hospitalisation, time in hospital, incubator care or time under incubator care. Neonates born at home were less likely to be hospitalised after birth owing to neonatal morbidity than neonates born in hospital. It is unclear whether this finding reflects poorer accessibility to hospital care for neonates born at home, or if neonates born at home required hospitalisation less frequently than neonates born in hospital owing to lower neonatal morbidity or other factors such as lower rates of medical intervention for home births. Further research is needed to explore the underlying mechanisms of these findings.

Risk of Allergic Rhinitis, Allergic Conjunctivitis, and Eczema in Children Born to Mothers with Gum Inflammation during Pregnancy

PubMed Central

Hsieh, Vivian Chia-Rong; Liu, Chin-Chen; Hsiao, Yu-Chen; Wu, Trong-Neng

2016-01-01

Purpose Despite links between maternal and child health status, evidence on the association between gum infection in pregnant mothers and childhood allergies is scarce. We aim to evaluate the risk of developing allergy in children born to periodontal mothers in a nationwide study. Methods We conducted a 9-year population-based, retrospective cohort study using Taiwan’s National Health Insurance database. A study cohort of 42,217 newborns born to mothers with periodontal disease during pregnancy was identified in 2001 and matched with 42,334 babies born to mothers without any infection (control) by mother’s age at delivery and baby sex. With a follow-up period from 2001 to 2010, we observed the incidence of allergic rhinitis (AR), allergic conjunctivitis (AC), and eczema in these children. Cox proportional hazards regression models were performed with premature deaths as competing risk for the estimation of allergic disease risks. Results Nine-year cumulative incidences were the highest among children born to periodontal mothers; they reached 46.8%, 24.2%, and 40.4% (vs. 39.5%, 18.3% and 34.8% in control) for AR, AC, and eczema, respectively. Our results showed moderately increased risks for the allergies in children born to periodontal mothers relative to their matched non-inflammatory control (adjusted HRs: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.15–1.20; 1.27, 1.24–1.31; 1.14, 1.12–1.17, respectively). Because the impact of food consumption and living environment cannot be considered using insurance data, we attempted to control it by adjusting for parental income and mother’s residential area. Conclusions Overall cumulative incidence and risks of children born to periodontal mothers for AR, AC, and eczema are significantly higher than those born to non-inflammatory mothers. Gum infection in women during pregnancy is an independent risk factor for allergic diseases in children, thus its intergenerational consequences should be considered in gestational care. PMID:27224053

Leptin may enhance hepatic insulin sensitivity in children and women born small for gestational age

PubMed Central

Kistner, Anna; Vanpée, Mireille; Hall, Kerstin

2013-01-01

Objective Children born small for gestational age (SGA) are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Lipodystrophy leads to early type 2 diabetes and leptin reverses the metabolic consequences of the disease. Low IGF-binding protein 1 (IGFBP1) can predict the development of type 2 diabetes. The aim of this study was to determine leptin, insulin, and IGFBP1 in children and adult women born preterm or SGA to evaluate the role of leptin as a compensatory mechanism in insulin resistance development. Methods Seventy-six children (8.5–10 years, 41 girls and 35 boys) and 45 women (23–30 years) were studied. The children comprised subjects born appropriate for gestational age (<30 gestational weeks) (n=22), born SGA at term (n=23), and full-term normal-weight controls (n=31). Among the women, the corresponding figures were, n=10, n=18, and n=17 respectively. Fasting levels of IGFBP1, leptin, insulin, and IGF1 were determined and total adiponectin only in women. Results In girls and women, term SGA subjects had higher leptin levels in relation to BMI SDS (P=0.042 and P=0.03 respectively). More than half of IGFBP1 variability was explained by leptin and insulin in children. In term SGA women, IGFBP1 level was lower compared with controls (P=0.012) and the regression line of IGFBP1 on insulin was suppressed below −1 s.d. of a reference material. Conclusion Leptin levels were elevated in term SGA girls and women, in particular in adult women, but not found in preterm girls and women. IGFBP1 was lower in term SGA women. In children, leptin and insulin were strong suppressors of IGFBP1. We speculate that higher leptin levels could be a protective event to enhance hepatic insulin sensitivity. PMID:23781317

Development of Emotional and Behavioral Regulation in Children Born Extremely Preterm and Very Preterm: Biological and Social Influences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clark, Caron A. C.; Woodward, Lianne J.; Horwood, L. John; Moor, Stephanie

2008-01-01

This study describes the development of emotional and behavioral regulation in a regional cohort of children born extremely preterm (less than 28 weeks gestational age, n = 39), very preterm (less than 34 weeks gestational age, n = 56), and full term (n = 103). At 2 and 4 years, children born at younger gestational ages demonstrated poorer…

A Register Study of Life Events in Young Adults Born to Mothers with Mild Intellectual Disability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lindblad, Ida; Billstedt, Eva; Gillberg, Christopher; Fernell, Elisabeth

2014-01-01

Background: Young adults, born to population-representative mothers with intellectual disability (ID), were targeted for psychosocial/life event follow-up. Methods: The whole group originally comprised 42 individuals but 3 had died and 1 had moved abroad. The remaining 38 were approached and 10 consented to participate in an interview study.…

Behavioral characteristics and cognitive development among school age children born to women with epilepsy.

PubMed

Güveli, Betül T; Gürses, Candan; Ataklı, Dilek; Akça Kalem, Şükriye; Dirican, Ahmet; Bebek, Nerses; Baykan, Betül; Gökyiğit, Aysen

2015-04-01

Greater risks of congenital malformation as well as cognitive and behavioral development in later childhood occur as a result of in utero exposure to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). We examined the effects of AEDs on behavioral characteristics and cognitive development among school age children born to women with epilepsy. Children aged 6-15 years and born to women with epilepsy were enrolled in the study. Information was collected on the women's demographics and the details of their usage/non-usage of AEDs during pregnancy. The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for the Children-Revised (WICS-R) test was administered to the children. The Alexander IQ test and the Conner Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) were administered to the mothers. Comparisons were made between children who had been exposed and not exposed to AEDs in utero and if exposed, according to exposure to AED monotherapy or polytherapy. The mother's education level and IQ score and data from the same parent's siblings were evaluated with respect to consanguinity. Forty-one children born to 28 women with epilepsy were enrolled. Seven mothers had multiple pregnancies. Twenty-three pregnancies (56%) were exposed to monotherapy and five (12·1%) to polytherapy. The remaining 13 (31·7%) were not exposed to AEDs. Maternal education level was a significant major factor in child IQ development (P < 0·05). The performance IQ-coding scale results were lower in children exposed to polytherapy than in children exposed to monotherapy in utero (P < 0·05). Although it is difficult to assert with confidence, the sibling assessment indicated a negative effect of valproate on IQ. It is important that the AED dosage be reduced to a minimum to maintain seizure control for healthy cognitive and behavioral development of a child.

Association between brain activation (fMRI), cognition and school performance in extremely preterm and term born children.

PubMed

Griffiths, Silja Torvik; Aukland, Stein Magnus; Markestad, Trond; Eide, Geir Egil; Elgen, Irene; Craven, Alexander R; Hugdahl, Kenneth

2014-10-01

The purpose of the study was to investigate a possible association between brain activation in functional magnetic resonance imaging scans, cognition and school performance in extremely preterm children and term born controls. Twenty eight preterm and 28 term born children were scanned while performing a working memory/selective attention task, and school results from national standardized tests were collected. Brain activation maps reflected difference in cognitive skills but not in school performance. Differences in brain activation were found between children born preterm and at term, and between high and low performers in cognitive tests. However, the differences were located in different brain areas. The implication may be that lack of cognitive skills does not alone explain low performance due to prematurity. © 2014 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Pathogenesis, Neuroimaging and Management in Children with Cerebral Palsy Born Preterm

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hoon, Alexander H., Jr.; Faria, Andreia Vasconcellos

2010-01-01

With advances in obstetric and perinatal management, the incidence of intraventricular hemorrhage in premature infants has declined, while periventricular leukomalacia remains a significant concern. It is now known that brain injury in children born preterm also involves neuronal-axonal disease in supratentorial and infratentorial structures. The…

Book Ownership and Young Children's Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tadesse, Selamawit; Washington, Patsy

2013-01-01

Research indicates that there are positive effects when young children read and explore books for pleasure, as such activities help build the skills and knowledge that are critical to schooling. Reading for pleasure is facilitated when children have access to books in their own homes. There are great variations in children's book ownership…

Young Children and the Arts: Nurturing Imagination and Creativity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Korn-Bursztyn, Carol, Ed.

2012-01-01

Young Children and the Arts: Nurturing Imagination and Creativity examines the place of the arts in the experiences of young and very young children at home and in out-of-home settings at school and in the community. There is great need for development of resources in the arts specifically designed to introduce babies and toddlers to participatory…

Neurodevelopmental disorders in children born to mothers with systemic lupus erythematosus.

PubMed

Vinet, É; Pineau, C A; Clarke, A E; Fombonne, É; Platt, R W; Bernatsky, S

2014-10-01

Children born to women with systemic lupus erythematosus seem to have a potentially increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders compared to children born to healthy women. Recent experimental data suggest in utero exposure to maternal antibodies and cytokines as important risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders. Interestingly, women with systemic lupus erythematosus display high levels of autoantibodies and cytokines, which have been shown, in animal models, to alter fetal brain development and induce behavioral anomalies in offspring. Furthermore, subjects with systemic lupus erythematosus and neurodevelopmental disorders share a common genetic predisposition, which could impair the fetal immune response to in utero immunologic insults. Moreover, systemic lupus erythematosus pregnancies are at increased risk of adverse obstetrical outcomes and medication exposures, which have been implicated as potential risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders. In this article, we review the current state of knowledge on neurodevelopmental disorders and their potential determinants in systemic lupus erythematosus offspring. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.

Teaching Young Children How to Sing: One School's Experience

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kenney, Susan

2011-01-01

In many schools, classroom teachers are responsible for the music experiences of young children. Children may learn songs, but may not learn "how" to sing. This article outlines simple teaching strategies to help young children develop listening and vocal habits leading to beautiful singing. The article discusses how the kindergarten classes at…

Young Children Can Be Key to Fire-Safe Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kourofsky, Carolyn E.; Cole, Robert E.

2010-01-01

For more than 15 years, preschool programs nationwide have worked with Fireproof Children/Prevention First, an international center for injury prevention research and education, to bring fire safety education to young children and their families. The "play safe! be safe!"[R] curriculum includes lessons that young children can learn and understand,…

Lumbar disc herniation in young children.

PubMed

Haidar, R; Ghanem, I; Saad, S; Uthman, I

2010-01-01

This article explores lumbar disc herniation in young children through focusing on matters relevant to patient presentation, physical examination, differential diagnosis, imaging and treatment. Major databases were searched for studies that addressed lumbar disc herniation in young children. Diagnosis of lumbar disc herniation in young children is usually delayed because of the rarity and lack of experience with this entity and the difficulty in extracting a reliable medical history. Nevertheless, lumbar disc herniation should be considered in the differential diagnosis of any young child presenting with a chief complaint of back pain and/or radiculopathy, especially in the setting of recent trauma. This should be coupled with a directed physical examination to elicit signs and narrow the differential diagnosis. Imaging studies, mainly magnetic resonance imaging, will help establish a diagnosis; yet radiographs are still required to exclude other spinal lesions. The initial management of lumbar disc herniation in children is the same as that in adults and consists of conservative treatment unless lumbar disc herniation affects the patient's motor and neurological functions in which case, early surgical treatment must be undertaken. Although the latter remains more difficult, current experience suggests a favourable outcome. Awareness of lumbar disc herniation will help the paediatrician extract a relevant medical history, perform a directed physical examination, and order appropriate imaging studies. This will aid in initiating early intervention, be it conservative or operative, and achieving a favourable outcome.

An Integrated Play-Based Curriculum for Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saracho, Olivia N.

2011-01-01

Play provides young children with the opportunity to express their ideas, symbolize, and test their knowledge of the world. It provides the basis for inquiry in literacy, science, social studies, mathematics, art, music, and movement. Through play, young children become active learners engaged in explorations about themselves, their community, and…

Respiratory morbidity through the first decade of life in a national cohort of children born extremely preterm.

PubMed

Skromme, Kaia; Vollsæter, Maria; Øymar, Knut; Markestad, Trond; Halvorsen, Thomas

2018-03-07

Advances in perinatal care have markedly increased the prospects of survival for infants born extremely preterm (EP). The aim of this study was to investigate hospitalisation rates and respiratory morbidity from five to 11 years of age in a prospective national cohort of EP children born in the surfactant era. This was a national prospective cohort study of all children born in Norway during 1999 and 2000 with gestational age (GA) < 28 weeks or birth weight < 1000 grams, and of individually matched term-born controls recruited for a regional subsample. Data on hospital admissions, respiratory symptoms, and use of asthma medication was obtained by parental questionnaires at 11 years of age. Questionnaires were returned for 232/372 (62%) EP-born and 57/61 (93%) regional term-born controls. Throughout the study period, 67 (29%) EP-born and seven (13%) term-born controls were admitted to hospital (odds ratio (OR) 2.90, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.25, 6.72). Admissions were mainly due to surgical procedures, with only 12% due to respiratory causes, and were not influenced by neonatal bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) or low GA(≤ 25 weeks). Respiratory symptoms, asthma and use of asthma medication tended to be more common for EP-born, significantly so for medication use and wheeze on exercise. Neonatal BPD was a risk factor for medication use, but not for current wheeze. In multivariate regression models, home oxygen after discharge (OR 4.84, 95% CI: 1.38, 17.06) and parental asthma (OR 4.38, 95% CI: 1.69, 11.38) predicted current asthma, but neither BPD nor low GA were associated with respiratory symptoms at 11 years of age. Hospitalisation rates five to 11 years after EP birth were low, but twice those of term-born controls, and unrelated to neonatal BPD and low GA. Respiratory causes were rare. Respiratory complaints were more common in children born EP, but the burden of symptoms had declined since early childhood.

Children's and adolescent's perspectives on cleft lip and/or palate.

PubMed

Hall, Melanie J; Gibson, Barry J; James, Allison; Rodd, Helen D

2013-03-01

Children's voices are being increasingly acknowledged in health care research. The aim of this study was to explore children's and young people's perspectives of being born with a cleft lip and/or palate. The research took a qualitative approach that consisted of two interviews with each child, drawing on child-centered methodologies and techniques. The initial interview focused on children's general life stories, and these often encompassed a discussion about cleft lip and/or palate. The follow-up interview explored specific aspects of the condition and related treatment. The self-selected sample consisted of 17 children and young people (eight boys, nine girls) with cleft lip and/or palate, aged 8 to 17 years, who received treatment at a dental hospital in the U.K. Children's and young people's accounts identified a number of themes including how they became aware that they had been born with the condition, their views of the treatment pathway, and how it related to who they are. This study highlights the value of including young people's perspectives in oral health-related research. It has allowed a deeper insight into cleft lip and palate and shows that young people can contribute their views and experiences about services which demonstrate that these could be incorporated into service evaluations.

Neurodevelopment in children with and without congenital heart block born to anti-Ro/SSA-positive mothers.

PubMed

Skog, Amanda; Tingström, Joanna; Salomonsson, Stina; Sonesson, Sven-Erik; Wahren-Herlenius, Marie

2013-01-01

To define factors influencing neurodevelopment in children with and without complete congenital heart block (CHB) born to mothers with Ro/SSA autoantibodies. Medical records of a population-based cohort of siblings with (n = 60) and without (n = 54) CHB born 1974-2009 to anti-Ro/SSA-positive mothers were retrieved from children primary healthcare centres and school health services and used to extract data on neurodevelopment. Impaired neurodevelopment was reported in 16% of the children (18/114) during the follow-up time of 13.0 (8.2-17.5) years, median (quartiles). Reported problems included speech (9%), motor (8%) and learning (8%) impairment, attention deficit (5%) and behavioural impairment (4%). Impairment in motor skill development was more common in boys (p < 0.001) if the child was born preterm (p < 0.001). Learning impairment was significantly influenced by maternal SLE (p < 0.005), while attention deficits was influenced by both maternal SLE (p < 0.05) and CHB in the child (p < 0.05). Our data indicate that in addition to well-established factors such as male sex and being born preterm, both maternal SLE and CHB may influence neurodevelopment. Follow-up of neurodevelopment should therefore be considered for children with CHB, especially if the mother is diagnosed with SLE. ©2012 The Author(s)/Acta Paediatrica ©2012 Foundation Acta Paediatrica.

Advice for families traveling to developing countries with young children.

PubMed

Doan, Sylvia; Steele, Russell W

2013-09-01

Young children are most likely to travel to developing countries with their parents to visit relatives. Preparation for such travel must include careful counseling and optimal use of preventive vaccines and chemoprophylaxis. For infants and very young children, data defining safety and efficacy of these agents are often limited. However, accumulated experience suggests that young travelers may be managed similarly to older children and adults.

Socialization and Instrumental Competence in Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baumrind, Diana

1970-01-01

Discusses relationships between parental authority patterns by which children are influenced and the development of socially responsible and independent behavior in young children (especially girls). (NH)

Psychosexual Development in Infants and Young Children: Implications for Caregivers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honig, Alice Sterling

Psychosexual development in young children is a topic that early childhood educators often ignore in the belief that children are not sexual beings. This paper discusses psychosexual development in young children, noting that preschoolers are often puzzled by sexual anatomical differences, that children need names for sexual body parts, and that…

A prospective, longitudinal study of growth, nutrition and sedentary behaviour in young children with cerebral palsy

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background Cerebral palsy is the most common cause of physical disability in childhood, occurring in one in 500 children. It is caused by a static brain lesion in the neonatal period leading to a range of activity limitations. Oral motor and swallowing dysfunction, poor nutritional status and poor growth are reported frequently in young children with cerebral palsy and may impact detrimentally on physical and cognitive development, health care utilisation, participation and quality of life in later childhood. The impact of modifiable factors (dietary intake and physical activity) on growth, nutritional status, and body composition (taking into account motor severity) in this population is poorly understood. This study aims to investigate the relationship between a range of factors - linear growth, body composition, oral motor and feeding dysfunction, dietary intake, and time spent sedentary (adjusting for motor severity) - and health outcomes, health care utilisation, participation and quality of life in young children with cerebral palsy (from corrected age of 18 months to 5 years). Design/Methods This prospective, longitudinal, population-based study aims to recruit a total of 240 young children with cerebral palsy born in Queensland, Australia between 1st September 2006 and 31st December 2009 (80 from each birth year). Data collection will occur at three time points for each child: 17 - 25 months corrected age, 36 ± 1 months and 60 ± 1 months. Outcomes to be assessed include linear growth, body weight, body composition, dietary intake, oral motor function and feeding ability, time spent sedentary, participation, medical resource use and quality of life. Discussion This protocol describes a study that will provide the first longitudinal description of the relationship between functional attainment and modifiable lifestyle factors (dietary intake and habitual time spent sedentary) and their impact on the growth, body composition and nutritional status of young

Are there critical periods for brain growth in children born preterm?

PubMed

Cooke, R W I

2006-01-01

Children born very preterm who attend mainstream schools have a high prevalence of minor motor, behavioural, and learning disorders. These appear to be associated with reduced postnatal growth, particularly of the head. It is unclear when this poor growth occurs and whether growth restriction during different periods has different effects on later function. To identify periods during early development, in children born preterm, when impaired head growth may influence minor motor and cognitive function. A geographically defined cohort of 194 infants born in Merseyside during 1980-81 and weighing less than 1500 g. Measurements of head circumference (occipitofrontal circumference (OFC)) were available at birth, hospital discharge, 4 years, and 15 years of age. Assessments of intelligence (intelligence quotient (IQ)) and minor motor impairment (test of motor impairment (TOMI)) were made at 8 years of age. Clinical, social, and demographic variables were obtained from the clinical record and maternal interviews. IQ correlated significantly with OFC at 4 and 15 years of age after correction for growth restriction at birth (intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR)) and social class. TOMI scores correlated significantly with OFC at all four times, but especially with OFC at discharge and with change in OFC between birth and discharge. They were not affected by correction for social class or IUGR. Although both IQ and minor motor impairments correlate strongly with each other at school age in very low birthweight children, the factors determining them and their timing of operation are different. Interventions designed to improve IQ in this population would need to reduce IUGR and improve later childhood growth. Those aimed to improve motor ability need to be targeted more at brain protection during the neonatal period.

Gender and Sexuality in Young Children's Perspectives of AIDS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bhana, D.; Jewnarain, D.

2012-01-01

Responses to AIDS have often neglected children. Drawing on a qualitative study of young children aged 7-9 years, this paper draws attention to their understandings of HIV and AIDS. It is argued that young children are able to give meaning to the disease in ways that link to their social contexts, where gender inequalities and sexual violence are…

Levels of Urbanization and Parental Education in Relation to the Mortality Risk of Young Children

PubMed Central

Fang, Hsin-Sheng; Chen, Wei-Ling; Chen, Chiu-Ying; Jia, Chun-Hua; Li, Chung-Yi; Hou, Wen-Hsuan

2015-01-01

Background: The establishment of the National Health Insurance program in Taiwan in 1995 effectively removed the financial barrier to access health care services of Taiwanese people. This population-based cohort study aimed to determine the independent and joint effects of parental education and area urbanization on the mortality risk among children under the universal health insurance coverage in Taiwan since 1995. Methods: We linked 1,501,620 births from 1996 to 2000 to the Taiwan Death Registry to estimate the neonatal, infant, and under-five mortality rates, according to the levels of parental education and urbanization of residential areas. We used a logistic regression model that considers data clustering to estimate the independent and joint effects. Results: Lower levels of parental education and area urbanization exerted an independent effect of mortality on young children, with a stronger magnitude noted for areas with lower levels of urbanization. Children whose parents had lower levels of education and who were born in areas with lower levels of urbanization experienced the highest risk for neonatal (odds ratio (OR) = 1.60, 95% CI = 1.46–1.76), infant (OR = 1.58, 95% CI = 1.48–1.70), and under-five (OR = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.61–1.82) mortality. Conclusions: Even with universal health insurance coverage, lower levels of area urbanization and parental education still exerted independent and joint effects on mortality in young children. This finding implies the inadequate accessibility to health care resources for children from socially disadvantaged families and less urbanized areas. PMID:26184248

Neurocognitive Correlates of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Children Born at Extremely Low Gestational Age.

PubMed

Scott, Megan N; Hunter, Scott J; Joseph, Robert M; OʼShea, Thomas Michael; Hooper, Stephen R; Allred, Elizabeth N; Leviton, Alan; Kuban, Karl

2017-05-01

Compared with children born near term, those born extremely preterm (EP) are at much higher risk for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Little information is available about differences in neuropsychological outcomes among EP children with and without ADHD. Our analyses aimed to evaluate the neuropsychological correlates of ADHD symptoms in extremely low gestational age newborns (ELGANs). We obtained Child Symptom Inventory-4 reports from parents (n = 871) and teachers (n = 634) of 10-year-old children born before the 28th week of gestation. Participants completed standardized assessments of neurocognitive and academic functioning. In the total sample, children who screened positive for ADHD symptoms were at increased risk for neurocognitive limitations. These associations were weaker when the sample was limited to those with intelligence quotient (IQ) ≥70 or ≥85. Even those with IQ ≥85 who screened positive for ADHD symptoms were more likely than their peers to have deficits on the DAS-II Working Memory Cluster and the NEPSY-II Auditory Response subtest. The risks for impaired academic performance (Z ≤ -1) on components of the WIAT-III were 2-to-3 times higher in this group than among ELGANs not classified as having ADHD symptoms. Among children born EP, those with ADHD symptoms are more likely to have global neurocognitive impairment. When IQ is within normal limits, ADHD symptoms are associated with deficits in executive functioning skills. These findings highlight a group at risk for executive functioning deficits and related academic difficulties, even in the absence of intellectual disability.

Neural correlates of "Theory of Mind" in very preterm born children.

PubMed

Mossad, Sarah I; Smith, Mary Lou; Pang, Elizabeth W; Taylor, Margot J

2017-11-01

Very preterm (VPT) birth (<32 weeks' gestational age) has been implicated in social-cognitive deficits including Theory of Mind (ToM); the ability to attribute mental states to others and understand that those beliefs can differ from one's own or reality. The neural bases for ToM deficits in VPT born children have not been examined. We used magnetoencephalography (MEG) for its excellent spatial and temporal resolution to determine the neural underpinnings of ToM in 24 VPT and 24 full-term born (FT) children (7-13 years). VPT children performed more poorly on neuropsychological measures of ToM but not inhibition. In the MEG task, both FT children and VPT children recruited regions involved in false belief processing such as the rIFG (VPT: 275-350 ms, FT: 250-375 ms) and left inferior temporal gyrus (VPT: 375-450 ms, FT: 325-375 ms) and right fusiform gyrus (VPT: 150-200 ms, FT: 175-250 ms). The rIPL (included in the temporal-parietal junction) was recruited in FT children (475-575 ms) and the lTPJ in VPT children (500-575 ms). However, activations in all regions were reduced in the VPT compared to the FT group. We suggest that with increasing social-cognitive demands such as varying the type of scenarios in the standardized measure of ToM, reduced activations in the rIFG and TPJ in the VPT group may reflect the decreased performance. With access to both spatial and temporal information, we discuss the role of domain general and specific regions of the ToM network in both groups. Hum Brain Mapp 38:5577-5589, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Social-Emotional Characteristics of Young Gifted Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honeck, Ellen

2012-01-01

Children, particularly young children, demonstrate characteristics of giftedness in many different ways. These characteristics manifest themselves based on gender, experiences, cultural identity, personal passions and interests, and family or community. Gifted children develop asynchronously. Morelock (2000) stated that "asynchrony in the gifted…

Speech outcome in young children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate treated with one- or two-stage palatal repair and the impact of early intervention.

PubMed

Raud Westberg, Liisi; Höglund Santamarta, Lena; Karlsson, Jenny; Nyberg, Jill; Neovius, Erik; Lohmander, Anette

2017-10-25

The aim of this study was to describe speech at 1, 1;6 and 3 years of age in children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) and relate the findings to operation method and amount of early intervention received. A prospective trial of children born with UCLP operated with a one-stage (OS) palatal repair at 12 months or a two-stage repair (TS) with soft palate closure at 3-4 months and hard palate closure at 12 months was undertaken (Scandcleft). At 1 and 1;6 years the place and manner of articulation and number of different consonants produced in babbling were reported in 33 children. At three years of age percentage consonants correct adjusted for age (PCC-A) and cleft speech errors were assessed in 26 of the 33 children. Early intervention was not provided as part of the trial but according to the clinical routine and was extracted from patient records. At age 3, the mean PCC-A was 68% and 46% of the children produced articulation errors with no significant difference between the two groups. At one year there was a significantly higher occurrence of oral stops and anterior place consonants in the TS group. There were significant correlations between the consonant production between one and three years of age, but not with amount of early intervention received. The TS method was beneficial for consonant production at age 1, but not shown at 1;6 or 3 years. Behaviourally based early intervention still needs to be evaluated.

Young children's tool innovation across culture: Affordance visibility matters.

PubMed

Neldner, Karri; Mushin, Ilana; Nielsen, Mark

2017-11-01

Young children typically demonstrate low rates of tool innovation. However, previous studies have limited children's performance by presenting tools with opaque affordances. In an attempt to scaffold children's understanding of what constitutes an appropriate tool within an innovation task we compared tools in which the focal affordance was visible to those in which it was opaque. To evaluate possible cultural specificity, data collection was undertaken in a Western urban population and a remote Indigenous community. As expected affordance visibility altered innovation rates: young children were more likely to innovate on a tool that had visible affordances than one with concealed affordances. Furthermore, innovation rates were higher than those reported in previous innovation studies. Cultural background did not affect children's rates of tool innovation. It is suggested that new methods for testing tool innovation in children must be developed in order to broaden our knowledge of young children's tool innovation capabilities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Helping Young Children to Develop Character.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crosser, Sandra

1997-01-01

Argues that, of the authoritarian, permissive, and authoritative styles of interaction with children, the latter nurtures the emergence of positive character traits in young children. Suggests listening, setting high and reasonable standards, explaining why, negotiating reasonable solutions, offering choices, and valuing ideas and opinions as…

Reducing Stress in Young Children's Lives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McCracken, Janet Brown, Ed.

Few adults deliberately set out to cause children stress or to teach them how to deal with it, yet adults do just that with every word, action, and reaction. This book collects work in the field of human development on how adults can help children learn to cope with stress. Each of the 30 chapters previously appeared in "Young Children,"…

Cognitive and socio-emotional development and manifestation of learning disabilities of 8- to 10-year-old children born after intracytoplasmatic sperm injection compared to naturally conceived children.

PubMed

Liapi, S; Polychronopoulou, S

2017-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the cognitive and socio-emotional development, as well as the mani- festation of learning disabilities of eight- to ten-year-old children born after intracytoplasmatic sperm injection (ICSI). Developmental outcomes of 40 children born after ICSI were compared with those of 40 children born after spontaneous conception (SC). Outcome measures included the Raven's Progressive Matrices Test, Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), and Athina Test of Learning Difficulties. Regarding cognitive development, ICSI children tend to obtain a similar intelligence score with SC children on Raven's Test. No significant differences were noted on CBCL's syndrome and abilities' profiles, and on Athina Test. ICSI and SC children show a comparable cognitive and socio-emotional development and have the same chances of manifesting learning disabilities. None of the demographic factors taken into consideration (age, sex of the child, and educational level of the parents) nor the mode of conception seem to affect their well-being.

Qualitative Investigation of Young Children's Music Preferences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roulston, Kathryn

2006-01-01

This qualitative study examined young children's music preferences through group conversations with children, interviews with parents, and non-participant observation of classroom settings in daycare and elementary classrooms. Data were analyzed inductively to generate themes, and revealed that (1) children expressed distinct preferences for an…

Young Children's Playfully Complex Communication: Distributed Imagination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alcock, Sophie

2010-01-01

This paper draws on research exploring young children's playful and humorous communication. It explores how playful activity mediates and connects children in complex activity systems where imagination, cognition, and consciousness become distributed across individuals. Children's playfulness is mediated and distributed via artefacts (tools, signs…

Seasonal and annual variation in young children's physical activity.

PubMed

McKee, David P; Murtagh, Elaine M; Boreham, Colin A G; Nevill, Alan M; Murphy, Marie H

2012-07-01

It is well established that regular physical activity (PA) contributes to lower levels of morbidity and mortality. However, little is known about the stability of very young children's PA habits across seasons and years. The aims of this study were to 1) examine the influence of season and increasing age on objectively assessed PA in preschool children and 2) examine the stability of young children's PA rankings during 1 yr. The PA levels of preschool (3- and 4-yr-old) children were measured, using 6-d pedometer step counts, during winter and spring (n = 85, 52 boys). PA levels were measured again 1 yr after the spring data collection when the children had entered primary school (n = 37, 22 boys). Parents completed questionnaires to assess attitudes toward PA, PA habits, and demographic information in the winter of the first year and the spring of the second year. Young children take approximately 2000 (20%) fewer steps per day in winter than in spring with a rank order stability between the two measures of r = 0.04 (P < 0.01). A modest degree of the observed intrachild or seasonal variation was related to the amount of time fathers played with their children (P < 0.05) and the availability of a safe place for children to play (P < 0.05). Children took approximately 2300 (20%) more steps per day at age 5 compared with age 4 (P < 0.01). The rank order stability of young children's PA during this period was low with correlations ranging from 0.01 to 0.15. Results suggest that a one-off assessment of PA is unlikely to be representative of a young child's activity during 1 yr and that PA tracks poorly from age 4 to 5.

Cyborgization: Deaf Education for Young Children in the Cochlear Implantation Era

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Valente, Joseph Michael

2011-01-01

The author, who was raised oral deaf himself, recounts a visit to a school for young deaf children and discovers that young d/Deaf children and their rights are subverted by the cochlear implantation empire. The hypercapitalist, techno-manic times of cochlear implantation has wreaked havoc to the lives of not only young children with deafness but…

Children born through reproductive donation: a longitudinal study of psychological adjustment.

PubMed

Golombok, Susan; Blake, Lucy; Casey, Polly; Roman, Gabriela; Jadva, Vasanti

2013-06-01

Parenting and children's adjustment were examined in 30 surrogacy families, 31 egg donation families, 35 donor insemination families, and 53 natural conception families. Parenting was assessed at age 3 by a standardized interview designed to assess quality of parenting and by questionnaire measures of anxiety, depression, and marital quality. Children's adjustment was assessed at ages 3, 7, and 10 using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Although children born through reproductive donation obtained SDQ scores within the normal range, surrogacy children showed higher levels of adjustment difficulties at age 7 than children conceived by gamete donation. Mothers who had kept their child's origins secret showed elevated levels of distress. However, maternal distress had a more negative impact on children who were aware of their origins. The absence of a gestational connection to the mother may be more problematic for children than the absence of a genetic link. © 2012 The Authors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry © 2012 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health.

Vaccination Coverage Disparities Between Foreign-Born and U.S.-Born Children Aged 19-35 Months, United States, 2010-2012.

PubMed

Varan, Aiden K; Rodriguez-Lainz, Alfonso; Hill, Holly A; Elam-Evans, Laurie D; Yankey, David; Li, Qian

2017-08-01

Healthy People 2020 targets high vaccination coverage among children. Although reductions in coverage disparities by race/ethnicity have been described, data by nativity are limited. The National Immunization Survey is a random-digit-dialed telephone survey that estimates vaccination coverage among U.S. children aged 19-35 months. We assessed coverage among 52,441 children from pooled 2010-2012 data for individual vaccines and the combined 4:3:1:3*:3:1:4 series (which includes ≥4 doses of diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis vaccine/diphtheria and tetanus toxoids vaccine/diphtheria, tetanus toxoids, and pertussis vaccine, ≥3 doses of poliovirus vaccine, ≥1 dose of measles-containing vaccine, ≥3 or ≥4 doses of Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine (depending on product type of vaccine; denoted as 3* in the series name), ≥3 doses of hepatitis B vaccine, ≥1 dose of varicella vaccine, and ≥4 doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine). Coverage estimates controlling for sociodemographic factors and multivariable logistic regression modeling for 4:3:1:3*:3:1:4 series completion are presented. Significantly lower coverage among foreign-born children was detected for DTaP, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Hib, pneumococcal conjugate, and rotavirus vaccines, and for the combined series. Series completion disparities persisted after control for demographic, access-to-care, poverty, and language effects. Substantial and potentially widening disparities in vaccination coverage exist among foreign-born children. Improved immunization strategies targeting this population and continued vaccination coverage monitoring by nativity are needed.

Fostering prosocial behavior and empathy in young children.

PubMed

Spinrad, Tracy L; Gal, Diana E

2018-04-01

There is increasing interest in understanding ways to foster young children's prosocial behavior (i.e. voluntary acts to benefit another). We begin this review by differentiating between types of prosocial behavior, empathy, and sympathy. We argue that sympathy and some types of prosocial behaviors are most likely intrinsically motivated, whereas other types of prosocial behaviors may be extrinsically motivated. Next, we highlight work focusing on the socialization practices that have been found to predict individual differences in young children's prosocial behavior and concern for others. Although work in the area is limited, we also review some intervention programs that have shown effectiveness in improving young children's positive social behaviors. We conclude with areas for future research. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Body dissatisfaction and dieting in young children.

PubMed

Schur, E A; Sanders, M; Steiner, H

2000-01-01

To develop a broader understanding of young children's knowledge and beliefs about dieting and body dissatisfaction. Sixty-two third through sixth-grade boys and girls completed audiotaped interviews and questionnaires regarding eating behavior, attitudes toward dieting, and body dissatisfaction. Fifty percent of all children wanted to weigh less and 16% reported attempting weight loss. Children were well informed about dieting and were most likely to believe that dieting meant changing food choices and exercising as opposed to restricting intake. Their primary source of information was the family. Seventy-seven percent of children mentioned hearing about dieting from a family member, usually a parent. Young children are knowledgeable about dieting and the concept of dieting does not necessarily mean caloric restriction to them. These data suggest that the family can play a powerful role in countering the development of eating concerns and body dissatisfaction in children. Copyright 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Child Indicators: Immunization of Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewit, Eugene M.; Mullahy, John

1994-01-01

Focuses on the immunization status of children aged 19 to 35 months. Recommended immunizations are described and contrasted with the actual status of immunization. In response to unacceptably low levels of immunization among very young children, the government is aiming at 90% immunization by the year 2000. (SLD)

Uncovering Young Children's Motivational Beliefs about Learning Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oppermann, Elisa; Brunner, Martin; Eccles, Jacquelynne S.; Anders, Yvonne

2018-01-01

Young children, ages 5-6 years, develop first beliefs about science and themselves as science learners, and these beliefs are considered important precursors of children's future motivation to pursue science. Yet, due to a lack of adequate measures, little is known about young children's motivational beliefs about learning science. The present…

Structural Connectivity Relates to Perinatal Factors and Functional Impairment at 7 Years in Children Born Very Preterm

PubMed Central

Thompson, Deanne K.; Chen, Jian; Beare, Richard; Adamson, Christopher L.; Ellis, Rachel; Ahmadzai, Zohra M.; Kelly, Claire E.; Lee, Katherine J.; Zalesky, Andrew; Yang, Joseph Y.M.; Hunt, Rodney W.; Cheong, Jeanie L.Y.; Inder, Terrie E.; Doyle, Lex W.; Seal, Marc L.; Anderson, Peter J.

2016-01-01

Objective To use structural connectivity to (1) compare brain networks between typically and atypically developing (very preterm) children, (2) explore associations between potential perinatal developmental disturbances and brain networks, and (3) describe associations between brain networks and functional impairments in very preterm children. Methods 26 full-term and 107 very preterm 7-year-old children (born <30 weeks’ gestational age and/or <1250 g) underwent T1- and diffusion-weighted imaging. Global white matter fiber networks were produced using 80 cortical and subcortical nodes, and edges created using constrained spherical deconvolution-based tractography. Global graph theory metrics were analysed, and regional networks were identified using network-based statistics. Cognitive and motor function were assessed at 7 years of age. Results Compared with full-term children, very preterm children had reduced density, lower global efficiency and higher local efficiency. Those with lower gestational age at birth, infection or higher neonatal brain abnormality score had reduced connectivity. Reduced connectivity within a widespread network was predictive of impaired IQ, while reduced connectivity within the right parietal and temporal lobes was associated with motor impairment in very preterm children. Conclusions This study utilized an innovative structural connectivity pipeline to reveal that children born very preterm have less connected and less complex brain networks compared with typically developing term-born children. Adverse perinatal factors led to disturbances in white matter connectivity, which in turn are associated with impaired functional outcomes, highlighting novel structure-function relationships. PMID:27046108

Maternal nationality and developmental delays in young children: Analysis of the data from the national registry in Taiwan.

PubMed

Tseng, Yen-Cheng; Guo, How-Ran; Lai, Der-Chung

2016-01-01

With globalization, transnational marriages become more and more common around the world. Children born to immigrant mothers might be more likely to have developmental delays, but studies on this topic are limited and with inconsistent results. To determine whether children born to immigrant mothers are more likely to have developmental delays. We analyzed the data from the national registry of children with developmental delays from 2009 to 2013 and compared the incidence of developmental delays between children born to immigrant mothers and native mothers. We also performed stratified analyses by age, sex, and geographic area. From 2009 to 2013, 78,946 new cases of developmental delays under 6 years of age were registered, including 5619 (7.1%) born to immigrant mothers. The incidence was higher in children born to native mothers in every year with rate ratios ranging from 1.32 to 1.48, and the differences reached statistical significance even after stratification by age, sex, and geographic area. Children born to immigrant mothers had lower incidence of developmental delays in Taiwan. The result may help reduce the discrimination of foreign spouses and their children. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Gestational age at birth and brain white matter development in term-born infants and children

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Studies on infants and children born preterm have shown that adequate gestational length is critical for brain white matter development. Less is known regarding how variations in gestational age at birth in term infants and children affect white matter development, which was evaluated in this study....

Young Children Experiencing Homelessness: The Overlooked Medium of Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schlembach, Sue

2017-01-01

The number of mothers with young children experiencing homelessness and seeking shelter has increased in the USA over the past decade. Shelters are often characterized as environments offering few opportunities for appropriate play experiences. This article delineates the important role of play for young children experiencing homelessness and…

Early growth patterns are associated with intelligence quotient scores in children born small-for-gestational age.

PubMed

Varella, Marcia H; Moss, William J

2015-08-01

To assess whether patterns of growth trajectory during infancy are associated with intelligence quotient (IQ) scores at 4 years of age in children born small-for-gestational age (SGA). Children in the Collaborative Perinatal Project born SGA were eligible for analysis. The primary outcome was the Stanford-Binet IQ score at 4 years of age. Growth patterns were defined based on changes in weight-for-age z-scores from birth to 4 months and 4 to 12 months of age and consisted of steady, early catch-up, late catch-up, constant catch-up, early catch-down, late catch-down, constant catch-down, early catch-up & late catch-down, and early catch-down & late catch-up. Multivariate linear regression was used to assess associations between patterns of growth and IQ. We evaluated patterns of growth and IQ in 5640 children. Compared with children with steady growth, IQ scores were 2.9 [standard deviation (SD)=0.54], 1.5 (SD=0.63), and 2.2 (SD=0.9) higher in children with early catch-up, early catch-up and later catch-down, and constant catch-up growth patterns, respectively, and 4.4 (SD=1.4) and 3.9 (SD=1.5) lower in children with early catch-down & late catch-up, and early catch-down growth patterns, respectively. Patterns in weight gain before 4 months of age were associated with differences in IQ scores at 4 years of age, with children with early catch-up having slightly higher IQ scores than children with steady growth and children with early catch-down having slightly lower IQ scores. These findings have implications for early infant nutrition in children born SGA. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Health, lifestyle, and quality of life for young adults born very preterm.

PubMed

Cooke, R W I

2004-03-01

Children born very preterm and able to attend mainstream schools have been shown to have a high prevalence of behavioural, minor motor, and learning difficulties. It is not clear whether these problems persist into adulthood, impacting on lifestyle and quality of life. A previously studied cohort of very low birth weight infants born between 1980 and 1983, together with term classmate controls, were assessed at age 19-22 years using a postal questionnaire. The questionnaire included the SF-36 to assess quality of life, a social activities scale, a lifestyle questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and questions on current height, weight, health, family structure, and education and occupation. Of the 138 preterm and 163 term controls in the cohort, 79 preterm and 71 term returned questionnaires. Quality of life was assessed as similar on six of eight domains of the SF-36. Social activities were also similar. Preterms drank less alcohol, used fewer illicit drugs, but smoked as often. Rates for sexual intercourse were similar, although preterms had more children. Preterms were shorter than controls and were less satisfied with their appearance. They were more likely to use a regular prescription medicine. Fewer were or had been in higher education, and some remained unemployed. The problems experienced by very preterm infants at school appear to influence lifestyle and health, but not perceived quality of life in early adulthood.

Emotion Knowledge in Young Neglected Children

PubMed Central

Sullivan, Margaret W.; Bennett, David S.; Carpenter, Kim; Lewis, Michael

2013-01-01

Young neglected children may be at risk for emotion knowledge deficits. Children with histories of neglect or with no maltreatment were initially seen at age 4 and again 1 year later to assess their emotion knowledge. Higher IQ was associated with better emotion knowledge, but neglected children had consistently poorer emotion knowledge over time compared to non-neglected children after controlling for IQ. Because both neglected status and IQ may contribute to deficits in emotional knowledge, both should be assessed when evaluating these children to appropriately design and pace emotion knowledge interventions. PMID:18299632

Emotion knowledge in young neglected children.

PubMed

Sullivan, Margaret W; Bennett, David S; Carpenter, Kim; Lewis, Michael

2008-08-01

Young neglected children may be at risk for emotion knowledge deficits. Children with histories of neglect or with no maltreatment were initially seen at age 4 and again 1 year later to assess their emotion knowledge. Higher IQ was associated with better emotion knowledge, but neglected children had consistently poorer emotion knowledge over time compared to non-neglected children after controlling for IQ. Because both neglected status and IQ may contribute to deficits in emotional knowledge, both should be assessed when evaluating these children to appropriately design and pace emotion knowledge interventions.

Loneliness in Young Children. ERIC Digest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bullock, Janis R.

Loneliness is a significant problem than can predispose young children to immediate and long-term negative consequences. This Digest presents an overview of loneliness, with suggestions for practitioners on how they can apply the research in early childhood settings. Children who feel lonely often experience poor peer relationships and feelings of…

Why Young Children Need Alphabet Books

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warner, Laverne; Weiss, Sara

2005-01-01

This article explains the importance of alphabet books in early reading development. Alphabet books encourage literacy development in the following ways: (1) unlock the symbols of language; (2) connect knowledge to other sources; (3) provide book usage knowledge to young children; (4) complement children's enjoyment of books; and (5) aid early…

Patterns of Functioning and Predictive Factors in Children Born Moderately Preterm or at Term

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cserjesi, Renata; van Braeckel, Koenraad N. J. A.; Timmerman, Marieke; Butcher, Phillipa R.; Kerstjens, Jorien M.; Reijneveld, Sijmen A.; Bouma, Anke; Bos, Arend F.; Geuze, Reint H.

2012-01-01

Aim: The aim of this study was to identify subgroups of children born moderately preterm (MPT) and term with distinctive levels and patterns of functioning, and the perinatal and demographic factors that predict subgroup membership. Method: A total of 378 children aged 7 years, 248 MPT (138 males, 110 females; gestational age 32-36 wks) and a…

The Living Conditions of U.S.-Born Children of Mexican Immigrants in Unmarried Families

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Padilla, Yolanda C.; Radey, Melissa Dalton; Hummer, Robert A.; Kim, Eunjeong

2006-01-01

Recent research has brought attention to the hardship faced by children of immigrants in the United States, particularly in the Mexican-origin population. In this study, the authors are concerned with the extent to which U.S.-born children of Mexican immigrants who live in unmarried families may face exceptional risks. Using data from the Fragile…

Protecting Against Influenza (Flu): Advice for Caregivers of Young Children

MedlinePlus

... Protecting Against Influenza (Flu): Advice for Caregivers of Young Children Language: English (US) Español Recommend on Facebook ... on How to Prevent Flu for Caregivers of Young Children 1. Take Time to Get a Vaccine ...

I Am Safe and Secure: Promoting Resilience in Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pizzolongo, Peter J.; Hunter, Amy

2011-01-01

Every day, young children--around the world and in the United States--experience stress or trauma. Some children are exposed to crises such as natural disasters, community violence, abuse, neglect, and separation from or death of loved ones. These events can cause young children to feel vulnerable, worried, fearful, sad, frustrated, or lonely.…

Differential Vulnerability of Global Motion, Global Form, and Biological Motion Processing in Full-Term and Preterm Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, N. M.; Jakobson, L. S.; Maurer, D.; Lewis, T. L.

2009-01-01

Young children born very prematurely show elevated thresholds for global motion and global form [Atkinson, J. & Braddick, O. (2007). "Visual and visuocognitive development in children born very prematurely." "Progress in Brain Research, 164." 123-149; MacKay, T. L., Jakobson, L. S., Ellemberg, D., Lewis, T. L., Maurer, D., & Casiro, O. (2005).…

Young Children Learning from Touch Screens: Taking a Wider View

PubMed Central

Lovato, Silvia B.; Waxman, Sandra R.

2016-01-01

Touch screen devices such as smartphones and tablets are now ubiquitous in the lives of American children. These devices permit very young children to engage interactively in an intuitive fashion with actions as simple as touching, swiping and pinching. Yet, we know little about the role these devices play in very young children’s lives or their impact on early learning and development. Here we focus on two areas in which existing research sheds some light on these issues with children under 3 years of age. The first measures transfer of learning, or how well children use information learned from screens to reason about events off-screen, using object retrieval and word learning tasks. The second measures the impact of interactive screens on parent-child interactions and story comprehension during reading time. More research is required to clarify the pedagogical potential and pitfalls of touch screens for infants and very young children, especially research focused on capabilities unique to touch screens and on the social and cultural contexts in which young children use them. PMID:27486421

Household food security is associated with growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh.

PubMed

Saha, Kuntal K; Frongillo, Edward A; Alam, Dewan S; Arifeen, Shams E; Persson, Lars A; Rasmussen, Kathleen M

2009-09-01

Despite a strong relationship between household food security and the health and nutritional status of adults and older children, the association of household food security with the growth of infants and young children has not been adequately studied, particularly in developing countries. We examined the association between household food security and subsequent growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh. We followed 1343 children from birth to 24 months of age who were born in the Maternal and Infant Nutrition Intervention in Matlab (MINIMat) study in rural Bangladesh. A food security scale was created from data collected on household food security from the mothers during pregnancy. Data on weight and length were collected monthly in the first year and quarterly in the second year of life. Anthropometric indices were calculated relative to the 2006 WHO child growth standards. Growth trajectories were modelled using multilevel models for change controlling for possible confounders. Household food security was associated (P < 0.05) with greater subsequent weight and length gain in this cohort. Attained weight, length and anthropometric indices from birth to 24 months were higher (P < 0.001) among those who were in food-secure households. Proportions of underweight and stunting were significantly (P < 0.05) lower in food-secure households. These results suggest that household food security is a determinant of child growth in rural Bangladesh, and that it may be necessary to ensure food security of these poor rural households to prevent highly prevalent undernutrition in this population and in similar settings elsewhere in the world.

School absence and its effect on school performance for children born with orofacial clefts.

PubMed

Bell, Jane; Raynes-Greenow, Camille; Turner, Robin; Bower, Carol; Dodson, Alan; Hancock, Kirsten; Nassar, Natasha

2017-07-17

School absence is associated with lower performance on standardized tests. Children born with orofacial clefts (OFC) are likely to have more absence than children without OFC; however, school absence for children with OFC has not been quantified. We aimed to describe school absence and its relationship with school performance for children with and without OFC. Population-based record-linked cohort study of children (402 with OFC, 1789 without OFC) enrolled in schools in Western Australia, 2008 to 2012. We compared median school absence rates using Wilcoxon rank tests, and investigated the impact of school absence on standardized scores from reading, numeracy, and writing tests, using multivariable models fitted by generalized estimating equations. In Semester 1, at each primary school year level, children without OFC and children with cleft lip only or cleft palate only had similar median absence rates (approximately 1 week). Children with cleft lip and palate had significantly higher absence rates in Years 4 to 6 (between 1 and 2 weeks). During secondary school, median absence rates were higher (2 weeks) for all children, but not statistically different between children with and without OFC. Higher absence was significantly associated with lower standardized reading, numeracy, and writing scores. However, having a cleft of any type had little influence on the association between absence and test scores. School absence affected school performance for all children. Absence did not differentially disadvantage children born with OFC, suggesting current practices to identify and support children with OFC are minimizing effects of their absence on school performance. Birth Defects Research 109:1048-1056, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Narrative in Young Children's Digital Art-Making

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sakr, Mona; Connelly, Vince; Wild, Mary

2016-01-01

Digital technologies have material and social properties that have the potential to create new opportunities for children's expressive arts practices. The presence and development of oral narratives in young children's visual art-making on paper has been noted in previous research, but little is known about the narratives children create when they…

Storied Selves: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Young Children's Literate Identifications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers, Rebecca; Elias, Martille

2012-01-01

A wealth of research demonstrates that as young children acquire literacy they also approximate literate roles and relationships. Such literate identifications, or storied selves, are complex, sometimes contradictory and under construction for young people. Less research has focused on "how" young children's storied selves are…

Health-Related Fitness and Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gabbard, Carl; LeBlanc, Betty

Because research indicates that American youth have become fatter since the 1960's, the development of fitness among young children should not be left to chance. Simple games, rhythms, and dance are not sufficient to insure fitness, for, during the regular free play situation, children very seldom experience physical activity of enough intensity…

Young Children's Drawings in Problem Solving

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bakar, Kamariah Abu; Way, Jennifer; Bobis, Janette

2016-01-01

This paper explores young children's drawings (6 years old) in early number and addition activities in Malaysia. Observation, informal interviews and analysis of drawings revealed two types of drawing, and gave insight into the transitional process required for children to utilise drawings in problem solving. We argue the importance of valuing and…

Helping Young Children in Frightening Times.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young Children, 2001

2001-01-01

Presents ways parents and other adults can help young children deal with tragedy and violence in the wake of terrorist attacks on the United States. Suggests giving reassurance and physical comfort, providing structure and stability, expecting a range of reactions, helping children to talk if they are ready, turning off the television, and…

Developmentally Appropriate Gardening for Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stoecklin, Vicki L.

Noting that the recent interest in gardening with young children has resulted in a variety of programs but little support to teachers or horticulturists on how to understand the developmental needs of children and how to adapt gardening activities to those needs, this paper presents principles and goals of developmentally appropriate gardening.…

Bullying: Young Children's Roles, Social Status, and Prevention Programmes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saracho, Olivia N.

2017-01-01

Bullying in schools has been identified as a serious and complex worldwide problem associated with young children's victimization. Research studies indicate the frequency and effects of bullying among young children. The effects seem to be across-the-board for both bullies and victims, who are at risk of experiencing emotional, social, and…

A Structural Analysis on Korean Young Children's Mathematical Ability and Its Related Children's and Mothers' Variables

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Hye Jung; Kim, Jihyun

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to examine the structural relationships among variables that predict the mathematical ability of young children, namely young children's mathematical attitude, exposure to private mathematical learning, mothers' view about their children's mathematical learning, and mothers' mathematical attitude. To this end, we…

Mobility and Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bernard van Leer Foundation Newsletter, 1994

1994-01-01

This newsletter theme issue deals with the phenomenon of mobility or transience in India, Kenya, Greece, Ireland, Malaysia, Thailand and Israel. The primary focus is on mobility's effect on young children, specifically their health and education; some of the broader concerns also addressed by the newsletter are the causes of mobility and its…

Neonatal Pain-Related Stress Predicts Cortical Thickness at Age 7 Years in Children Born Very Preterm

PubMed Central

Ranger, Manon; Chau, Cecil M. Y.; Garg, Amanmeet; Woodward, Todd S.; Beg, Mirza Faisal; Bjornson, Bruce; Poskitt, Kenneth; Fitzpatrick, Kevin; Synnes, Anne R.; Miller, Steven P.; Grunau, Ruth E.

2013-01-01

Background Altered brain development is evident in children born very preterm (24–32 weeks gestational age), including reduction in gray and white matter volumes, and thinner cortex, from infancy to adolescence compared to term-born peers. However, many questions remain regarding the etiology. Infants born very preterm are exposed to repeated procedural pain-related stress during a period of very rapid brain development. In this vulnerable population, we have previously found that neonatal pain-related stress is associated with atypical brain development from birth to term-equivalent age. Our present aim was to evaluate whether neonatal pain-related stress (adjusted for clinical confounders of prematurity) is associated with altered cortical thickness in very preterm children at school age. Methods 42 right-handed children born very preterm (24–32 weeks gestational age) followed longitudinally from birth underwent 3-D T1 MRI neuroimaging at mean age 7.9 yrs. Children with severe brain injury and major motor/sensory/cognitive impairment were excluded. Regional cortical thickness was calculated using custom developed software utilizing FreeSurfer segmentation data. The association between neonatal pain-related stress (defined as the number of skin-breaking procedures) accounting for clinical confounders (gestational age, illness severity, infection, mechanical ventilation, surgeries, and morphine exposure), was examined in relation to cortical thickness using constrained principal component analysis followed by generalized linear modeling. Results After correcting for multiple comparisons and adjusting for neonatal clinical factors, greater neonatal pain-related stress was associated with significantly thinner cortex in 21/66 cerebral regions (p-values ranged from 0.00001 to 0.014), predominately in the frontal and parietal lobes. Conclusions In very preterm children without major sensory, motor or cognitive impairments, neonatal pain-related stress appears to be

Young Children's Reports of when Learning Occurred

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tang, Connie M.; Bartsch, Karen; Nunez, Narina

2007-01-01

This study investigated young children's reports of when learning occurred. A total of 96 4-, 5-, and 6-year-olds were recruited from suburban preschools and elementary schools. The children learned an animal fact and a body movement. A week later, children learned another animal fact and another body movement and then answered questions about…

Assessing Young Children's Social Concept Development.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stanley, William B.; And Others

This study investigated a number of questions regarding the nature of social concept development in young children. Subjects were 64 kindergarten children and 65 first grade public school students from lower to upper middle class socioeconomic levels, of whom 66 were male, 63 were female, 78 were Caucasian, and 51 were black. Two assessment…

The Positive Aspects of Aggressive Behavior in Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Periolat, Janet; Nager, Nancy

Not all fighting or aggression in young children is bad, and some kinds of teacher intervention may be beneficial. Play-fighting refers primarily to rough and tumble play and chasing, and several studies have shown that play and serious fighting can be clearly distinguished in young children. Numerous authors have pointed out the value and…

How Much Do Young Children Know about HIV/AIDS?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bhana, Deevia

2010-01-01

This paper explores the ways in which young South African school children (aged between seven and eight) in a predominantly white primary school give meanings to HIV/AIDS. Using ethnographic methods and interview data, the analysis of young children's responses shows that their accounts of HIV/AIDS draw from their knowledge of disease more…

Effects of fast food branding on young children's taste preferences.

PubMed

Robinson, Thomas N; Borzekowski, Dina L G; Matheson, Donna M; Kraemer, Helena C

2007-08-01

To examine the effects of cumulative, real-world marketing and brand exposures on young children by testing the influence of branding from a heavily marketed source on taste preferences. Experimental study. Children tasted 5 pairs of identical foods and beverages in packaging from McDonald's and matched but unbranded packaging and were asked to indicate if they tasted the same or if one tasted better. Preschools for low-income children. Sixty-three children (mean +/- SD age, 4.6 +/- 0.5 years; range, 3.5-5.4 years). Branding of fast foods. A summary total taste preference score (ranging from -1 for the unbranded samples to 0 for no preference and +1 for McDonald's branded samples) was used to test the null hypothesis that children would express no preference. The mean +/- SD total taste preference score across all food comparisons was 0.37 +/- 0.45 (median, 0.20; interquartile range, 0.00-0.80) and significantly greater than zero (P<.001), indicating that children preferred the tastes of foods and drinks if they thought they were from McDonald's. Moderator analysis found significantly greater effects of branding among children with more television sets in their homes and children who ate food from McDonald's more often. Branding of foods and beverages influences young children's taste perceptions. The findings are consistent with recommendations to regulate marketing to young children and also suggest that branding may be a useful strategy for improving young children's eating behaviors.

Individual- and Family-Level Determinants of Risky Sexual Behavior Among Swedish- and Foreign-Born Young Adults 18-30 Years of Age, Residing in Skåne, Sweden.

PubMed

Asamoah, Benedict Oppong; Agardh, Anette

2018-02-01

In Sweden, various public health interventions have been performed to reduce risky sexual behaviors among young people and promote safer and positive approaches to sexuality, while attempting to bridge the gap between the less privileged or more vulnerable young people and their more privileged peers. This study aimed to compare the individual- and familial-level determinants of risky sexual behavior among foreign-born and Swedish-born young adults 18-30 years of age residing in Skåne, the south of Sweden. This was a cross-sectional study that used a questionnaire to collect data from 2968 randomly selected respondents between 18 and 30 years between January and March 2013. The associations were analyzed using chi-square tests, and simple and multiple logistic regression analyses. Younger age, i.e., individual-level factor, and living with only one parent or another person while growing up, i.e., familial-level factor, increased the risk of engaging in sexual risk taking for both Swedish- and foreign-born youth. Male gender was related to a higher risk of engaging in sexual risk-taking behaviors among foreign-born youth but was not as important as influence on sexual risk taking among Swedish-born youth. Parental education level, on the other hand, was significantly associated with sexual intercourse on the "first night" and early sexual debut solely among Swedish-born youth. Condom use was not associated with any family-level factor among both Swedish-born and foreign-born youth. The design of sexual reproductive health and rights messages and interventions to target risky sexual behavior among Swedish youth should take into consideration immigration status (for example, being Swedish-born or foreign-born), individual- and family-level characteristics, as well as the type of behavioral change or outcome desired.

The Early Academic Success of Children Born to Low-Income Teenage Mothers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casady, Angela; Luster, Tom; Bates, Laura; Vandenbelt, Marcia

This study focused on family influences on the academic success of first-grade children born to low-income, adolescent mothers. The families in this study were participants in a family support program for teen mothers called Family TIES (Trust, Information, Encouragement, and Support). Families were eligible for services provided by…

The Social Organisation of Help during Young Children's Use of the Computer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davidson, Christina

2012-01-01

This article examines some of the ways that young children seek and provide help through social interaction during use of the computer in the home. Although social interaction is considered an important aspect of young children's use of computers, there are still few studies that provide detailed analysis of how young children accomplish that…

Prevalence of obesity among young Asian-American children.

PubMed

Jain, Anjali; Mitchell, Stephanie; Chirumamilla, Radha; Zhang, Jin; Horn, Ivor B; Lewin, Amy; Huang, Z Jennifer

2012-12-01

Asian-American children are considered to be at low risk of obesity, but previous estimates have not distinguished between children from different Asian countries. We estimate the prevalence of obesity among Asian-American children by mother's country of origin, generational status, and family socioeconomic factors using a secondary analysis of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (ECLS-B) wave III (children ∼4 years old) dataset. The ECLS-B is a nationally representative study of children born in 2001 that oversampled births to Asian mothers. Asian ethnic categories included Chinese, Japanese, Filipino, Asian Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, and Other Asian/Pacific Islander. The primary outcome variable was weight status; overweight = BMI ≥85(th) and obese = BMI ≥95(th) percentile for age and gender. Twenty-six percent [95% confidence interval (CI) 23.6-29.1] of Asian-American 4 year olds were overweight or obese, and 13% (95% CI 10.2-15.2) were obese. Chinese-American children were at lower risk of overweight or obesity (23.5%, 95% CI 18.4-29.5 ) compared to whites (36%, 95% CI 34.3-37.7); Asian-Indian 4 year olds had the lowest rates of overweight or obesity (15.6%, 95% CI 8.0-28.2) and were most likely to be underweight (10%, 95% CI 4.9-19.4). Among Asians,Vietnamese-American children had the highest rate of overweight or obesity (34.7%, 95% CI 0.6-52.3). Vietnamese-American children are at elevated risk of obesity and overweight, whereas Chinese and Asian-Indian children are at low risk. After controlling for Asian ethnicity, maternal education, and household poverty status, Asian-American children whose mothers were born outside the United States were less likely to be obese [odds ratio = 0.55 (0.32-0.95), p = 0.03].

Mental health: early intervention and prevention in children and young people.

PubMed

Membride, Heather

It is estimated that 10% of children and young people have mental health problems so significant that they impact not only on their day-to-day life but, if left untreated, they will continue into adulthood. In this article, the author discusses mental health issues affecting children and young people and examines evidence-based early intervention and prevention programmes that have been shown to support better outcomes for children, young people and their families.

Factors associated with infants' and young children's (6-23 months) dietary diversity in Pakistan: evidence from the demographic and health survey 2012-13.

PubMed

Iqbal, Sarosh; Zakar, Rubeena; Zakar, Muhammad Zakria; Fischer, Florian

2017-12-06

Optimum nutrition and good feeding practices amongst infants and young children are the key determinants of growth for a healthy life. Dietary diversity is considered to be a reliable and easy-to-measure proxy variable to assess young children's feeding practices for dietary adequacy and nutritional intake. This research aims to examine the current practices of dietary diversity amongst infants and young children aged 6-23 months in Pakistan and the various associated factors at child, maternal, household and community levels. Secondary data analysis was performed for this research using the nationally representative dataset of the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2012-13. Data on the last-born infants and young children aged 6-23 months (n = 1102) was taken from their mothers' interviews, who reported on their child's consumption of 7 food groups during the 24 h immediately preceding the survey. Data was analysed, using IBM® SPSS® Complex Sample to measure the association between children's dietary diversity and various factors at child, maternal, household and community levels through multiple linear regressions. Our research uncovered positive associations between children's dietary diversity and other sociodemographic variables. Overall, a variation was observed in consumption of 7 food groups across the youngest, middle and oldest age-groups of children. Multivariate analysis revealed that the children's Dietary Diversity Score (scale from 0 to 7) increases to 0.56 (95% CI: 0.18-0.94) amongst children in the middle age-group (12-17 months). Furthermore, the children who were still breastfeeding, with mothers who had a primary level of schooling and whose mothers also received information/services from lady health workers (LHWs) on maternal and child health were found to be a statistically significant predictor of infants' and young children's dietary diversity. Nevertheless, amongst them, the DDS had a negative association with the children

Key health outcomes for children and young people with neurodisability: qualitative research with young people and parents

PubMed Central

Allard, Amanda; Fellowes, Andrew; Shilling, Valerie; Janssens, Astrid; Beresford, Bryony; Morris, Christopher

2014-01-01

Objectives To identify key health outcomes, beyond morbidity and mortality, regarded as important in children and young people with neurodisability, and their parents. Design Qualitative research incorporating a thematic analysis of the data supported by the Framework Approach; the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) provided a theoretical foundation. Setting The study was conducted in community settings. Participants Participants were 54 children and young people with neurodisability: 50 participated in focus groups, and 4 in interviews; 53 parents participated: 47 in focus groups and 6 in interviews. Children/young people and parents were recruited through different networks, and were not related. Results Children/young people and parents viewed health outcomes as inter-related. Achievement in some outcomes appeared valued to the extent that it enabled or supported more valued domains of health. Health outcomes prioritised by both young people and parents were: communication, mobility, pain, self-care, temperament, interpersonal relationships and interactions, community and social life, emotional well-being and gaining independence/future aspirations. Parents also highlighted their child's sleep, behaviour and/or safety. Conclusions Those responsible for health services for children/young people with neurodisability should take account of the aspects of health identified by families. The aspects of health identified in this study provide a basis for selecting appropriate health indicators and outcome measures. PMID:24747792

Changing trend? Sex ratios of children born to Indian immigrants in Norway revisited.

PubMed

Tønnessen, Marianne; Aalandslid, Vebjørn; Skjerpen, Terje

2013-09-05

In some Western countries, a disturbingly low share of girls has been observed among new-borns from Indian immigrants. Also in Norway, a previous study based on figures from 1969-2005 showed a high percentage of boys among children of Indian origin living in Norway, when the birth was of higher order (third birth or later). This was suggested to reflect a practice of sex-selective abortions in the Indian immigrant population. In this article we have seen whether extended time series for the period 2006-2012 give further support to this claim. Based on data from the Norwegian Central Population Register we used observations for the sex of all live births in Norway for the period 1969-2012 where the mother was born in India. The percentage of boys was calculated for each birth order, during four sub periods. Utilising a binomial probability model we tested whether the observed sex differences among Indian-born women were significantly different from sex differences among all births. Contrary to findings from earlier periods and other Western countries, we found that Indian-born women in Norway gave birth to more girls than boys of higher order in the period 2006-2012. This is somewhat surprising, since sex selection is usually expected to be stronger if the mother already has two or more children. The extended time series do not suggest a prevalence of sex selective abortions among Indian-born women in Norway. We discuss whether the change from a majority of boys to a majority of girls in higher order could be explained by new waves of immigrant women, by new preferences among long-residing immigrant women in Norway - or by mere coincidence.

The Significance of Personal Names for Very Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ostler, Teresa

2014-01-01

Personal names are more than just a sound or word. From the earliest stages of development, names are closely connected to a child's attachment figures and sense of identity. Like words of magic, young children first use names to beckon the parent to them. Experiences with others provide the necessary backdrop for young children to infuse names…

Answering Young Children's Questions about Sex.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hansen, Gladys

Intended for use by parents and teachers of preschool age children, this short booklet provides some guidelines to follow when introducing sex education to young children. It discusses issues such as where to begin, how to encourage the child to ask questions about sex, how to handle sex-related problems, child molestation, nudity and the family,…

Welfare reforms and the cognitive development of young children.

PubMed

Williamson, Deanna L; Salkie, Fiona J; Letourneau, Nicole

2005-01-01

To investigate whether the cognitive development of young children in poverty is affected by activities of their primary caregiver and by household income source, which are two components of family poverty experience that have been affected by recent welfare reforms. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used to examine the relationships that caregiver activity, household income source, and family characteristics (family income adequacy, caregiver depressive symptoms, caregiver education) have with the cognitive development of 59 impoverished children less than three years old. Of the three poverty experience variables included in the multivariate analysis, only employment as the exclusive source of household income had an independent relationship (positive) with children's cognitive development. Two of the family characteristics, income adequacy and caregiver education, also were associated with the children's cognitive score, and they were both better relative predictors than the employment-only income source variable. Income adequacy was positively associated and caregiver education was negatively associated with children's cognitive development. Although recent welfare reforms, in combination with economic growth and declining unemployment, have changed the poverty experience of young families by increasing the proportion that secure at least part of their income from employment, our study provides preliminary evidence that these reforms have made little difference for most young impoverished children. Instead, our findings suggest that the cognitive development of young children is influenced as much by the actual amount of household income as by their parents' activity and source of income.

Trends in Prevalence and Characteristics of Cerebral Palsy among Icelandic Children Born 1990 to 2003

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sigurdardottir, Solveig; Thorkelsson, Thordur; Halldorsdottir, Margret; Thorarensen, OLafur; Vik, Torstein

2009-01-01

Aim: To describe trends in cerebral palsy (CP) prevalence, severity, and associated impairments among 139 Icelandic children (65 males, 74 females) born from 1990 to 1996 (period one) and 1997 to 2003 (period two). Method: A population-based study using systematically collected data on motor functioning and associated impairments of children with…

Children Born Through Reproductive Donation: A Longitudinal Study of Psychological Adjustment

PubMed Central

Golombok, Susan; Blake, Lucy; Casey, Polly; Roman, Gabriela; Jadva, Vasanti

2012-01-01

Background Parenting and children’s adjustment were examined in 30 surrogacy families, 31 egg donation families, 35 donor insemination families, and 53 natural conception families. Methods Parenting was assessed at age 3 by a standardized interview designed to assess quality of parenting and by questionnaire measures of anxiety, depression and marital quality. Children’s adjustment was assessed at ages 3, 7 and 10 using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results Although children born through reproductive donation obtained SDQ scores within the normal range, surrogacy children showed higher levels of adjustment difficulties at age 7 than children conceived by gamete donation. Mothers who had kept their child’s origins secret showed elevated levels of distress. However, maternal distress had a more negative impact on children who were aware of their origins. Conclusions The absence of a gestational connection to the mother may be more problematic for children than the absence of a genetic link. PMID:23176601

Supporting Parents through Parent Education. Building Community Systems for Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zepeda, Marlene; Morales, Alex

California's Proposition 10, the "Children and Families Act," has targeted three general areas for improvement in support of families and young children: improved family functioning, improved child development, and improved child health. Proposition 10 views parents as critical to the development of young children. Noting that parent…

Performance-Based Assessment: An Alternative Assessment Process for Young Gifted Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hafenstein, Norma Lu; Tucker, Brooke

Performance-based assessment provides an alternative identification method for young gifted children. A performance-based identification process was developed and implemented to select three-, four-, and five-year-old children for inclusion in a school for gifted children. Literature regarding child development, characteristics of young gifted…

Impaired language abilities and white matter abnormalities in children born very preterm and/or very low birth weight

PubMed Central

Reidy, Natalie; Morgan, Angela; Thompson, Deanne K; Inder, Terrie E.; Doyle, Lex W; Anderson, Peter J

2012-01-01

Objectives To investigate language abilities in children born very preterm (VPT; <32 weeks’ gestational age (GA)) or very low birth weight (VLBW; <1500 g) at 7 years of age and compare their performances with children born at term, and to determine whether group differences could be explained by cerebral white matter abnormality on neonatal MRI. Study design A cohort of 198 children born <30 weeks’ GA and/or <1250 g, and 70 term controls were examined. White matter abnormalities were rated quantitatively on brain MRI at term-equivalent age. Language was assessed at age 7 years using standardized language tests. Differences between groups were tested in the five language sub-domains of phonological awareness, semantics, grammar, discourse, and pragmatics. A mediation effect was tested between birth group, white matter abnormality, and language sub-domains. Results The VPT/VLBW group performed significantly worse than controls on all language sub-domains (all p <.001). White matter abnormality mediated the effect of group differences on phonological awareness, and partly mediated this effect for semantics, grammar and discourse. White matter abnormality was not significantly associated with pragmatics (p = .13). Conclusions Language is an important area of concern in children born VPT/VLBW. Neonatal white matter abnormality is an important predictor of outcome; however, different language abilities are differentially associated with neonatal white matter abnormality. PMID:23158026

FREQUENCY OF MOUTHING BEHAVIOR IN YOUNG CHILDREN

EPA Science Inventory

Young children may be more likely than adults to be exposed to pesticides following a residential application as a result of hand- and object-to-mouth contacts in contaminated areas. However, relatively few studies have specifically evaluated mouthing behavior in children less ...

FREQUENCY OF MOUTHING BEHAVIOR IN YOUNG CHILDREN

EPA Science Inventory

Young children, as compared to adults, are more likely to be exposed after a pesticide application due to potential hand- and object-to-mouth contacts in contaminated areas. However, relatively few studies have specifically evaluated mouthing behavior in children <60 months of...

Language development of children born following intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) combined with assisted oocyte activation (AOA).

PubMed

D'haeseleer, Evelien; Vanden Meerschaut, Frauke; Bettens, Kim; Luyten, Anke; Gysels, Hannelore; Thienpont, Ylenia; De Witte, Griet; Heindryckx, Björn; Oostra, Ann; Roeyers, Herbert; Sutter, Petra De; van Lierde, Kristiane

2014-11-01

The effect of assisted reproduction technology (ART) on language development is still unclear. Moreover, different techniques are introduced at rapid pace and are not always accompanied by extensive follow-up programmes. To investigate the language development of 3-10-year-old children born following ART using intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) combined with assisted oocyte activation (AOA), which is a highly specialized technique applied in cases with a history of fertilization failure following conventional ICSI. Secondly, a comparison is made between the language development of singletons and twins. Twenty children, six boys and 14 girls, born following ICSI combined with AOA and older than 3 years were included in the study. The mean age of the children was 5;4 years (range = 3;1-10;4 years; SD = 1;8 years). Expressive and receptive language development were assessed using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF-IV-NL) for children older than 5 years and the Reynell Developmental Language Scales (RTOS) for children younger than or equal to 5 years. The mean total score for language ability (in percentiles) was 56.8 (SD = 33.6), which corresponds to normal language skills. Significantly higher scores were found for AOA singletons compared with twins. For the general language, none of the children scored within the clinical zone for language disability corresponding with a percentile lower than 5. This study presents the first data concerning language outcome in 3-10-year-old children born following AOA. General language scores of the AOA children in this study are located within the normal ranges. The language development of singletons was significantly better compared with twins. Although the results are reassuring for language development, in future long-term follow-up studies in this population are necessary. © 2014 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Influences on Young Children's Knowledge: The Case of Road Safety Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cullen, Joy

1998-01-01

Argues that effective road safety education for young children needs to incorporate constructivist and socio-cultural perspectives on learning. Excerpts interviews with young children highlighting the variety of influences affecting children's road safety knowledge and examination of a road safety curriculum to illustrate the value of a dual…

Young Children and Disasters: Lessons Learned About Resilience and Recovery

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Osofsky, Joy D.; Reuther, Erin T.

2013-01-01

For young children, consistency, nurturance, protection, and support are required for both resilience and full recovery. This article reviews relevant literature, developmental issues affecting young children, and factors that influence resilience and recovery including both promotive and protective influences. Focus is also placed on disaster…

Active for Life: Developmentally Appropriate Movement Programs for Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanders, Stephen W.

This book provides guidance on what high-quality movement programs for young children should include, offering a curricular foundation, strategies for teaching, and assessment ideas. It defines and illustrates specific interrelated components of developmentally appropriate practice in providing movement education for young children. There are…

Soft Stethoscope for Detecting Asthma Wheeze in Young Children

PubMed Central

Yu, Chun; Tsai, Tzu-Hsiu; Huang, Shi-Ing; Lin, Chii-Wann

2013-01-01

Asthma is a chronic disease that is commonly suffered by children. Asthmatic children have a lower quality of life than other children. Physicians and pediatricians recommend that parents record the frequency of attacks and their symptoms to help manage their children's asthma. However, the lack of a convenient device for monitoring the asthmatic condition leads to the difficulties in managing it, especially when it is suffered by young children. This work develops a wheeze detection system for use at home. A small and soft stethoscope was used to collect the respiratory sound. The wheeze detection algorithm was the Adaptive Respiratory Spectrum Correlation Coefficient (RSACC) algorithm, which has the advantages of high sensitivity/specificity and a low computational requirement. Fifty-nine sound files from eight young children (one to seven years old) were collected in the emergency room and analyzed. The results revealed that the system provided 88% sensitivity and 94% specificity in wheeze detection. In conclusion, this small soft stethoscope can be easily used on young children. A noisy environment does not affect the effectiveness of the system in detecting wheeze. Hence, the system can be used at home by parents who wish to evaluate and manage the asthmatic condition of their children. PMID:23744030

Soft stethoscope for detecting asthma wheeze in young children.

PubMed

Yu, Chun; Tsai, Tzu-Hsiu; Huang, Shi-Ing; Lin, Chii-Wann

2013-06-06

Asthma is a chronic disease that is commonly suffered by children. Asthmatic children have a lower quality of life than other children. Physicians and pediatricians recommend that parents record the frequency of attacks and their symptoms to help manage their children's asthma. However, the lack of a convenient device for monitoring the asthmatic condition leads to the difficulties in managing it, especially when it is suffered by young children. This work develops a wheeze detection system for use at home. A small and soft stethoscope was used to collect the respiratory sound. The wheeze detection algorithm was the Adaptive Respiratory Spectrum Correlation Coefficient (RSACC) algorithm, which has the advantages of high sensitivity/specificity and a low computational requirement. Fifty-nine sound files from eight young children (one to seven years old) were collected in the emergency room and analyzed. The results revealed that the system provided 88% sensitivity and 94% specificity in wheeze detection. In conclusion, this small soft stethoscope can be easily used on young children. A noisy environment does not affect the effectiveness of the system in detecting wheeze. Hence, the system can be used at home by parents who wish to evaluate and manage the asthmatic condition of their children.

Multicultural Literature for Children and Young Adults

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bista, Krishna

2012-01-01

In the selection of multicultural literature for children and young adults, educators and researchers focus on two main controversial issues--authority and authenticity--that the authors portray in their writing. What type of author can accurately portray realistic pictures of minority cultures in multicultural literature for young adults? Must it…

Variations in the neurobiology of reading in children and adolescents born full term and preterm

PubMed Central

Travis, Katherine E.; Ben-Shachar, Michal; Myall, Nathaniel J.; Feldman, Heidi M.

2016-01-01

Diffusion properties of white matter tracts have been associated with individual differences in reading. Individuals born preterm are at risk of injury to white matter. In this study we compared the associations between diffusion properties of white matter and reading skills in children and adolescents born full term and preterm. 45 participants, aged 9–17 years, included 26 preterms (born < 36 weeks' gestation) and 19 full-terms. Tract fractional anisotropy (FA) profiles were generated for five bilateral white matter tracts previously associated with reading: anterior superior longitudinal fasciculus (aSLF), arcuate fasciculus (Arc), corticospinal tract (CST), uncinate fasciculus (UF) and inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF). Mean scores on reading for the two groups were in the normal range and were not statistically different. In both groups, FA was associated with measures of single word reading and comprehension in the aSLF, AF, CST, and UF. However, correlations were negative in the full term group and positive in the preterm group. These results demonstrate variations in the neurobiology of reading in children born full term and preterm despite comparable reading skills. Findings suggest that efficient information exchange required for strong reading abilities may be accomplished via a different balance of neurobiological mechanisms in different groups of readers. PMID:27158588

Seroepidemiology of helminths and the association with severe malaria among infants and young children in Tanzania.

PubMed

Kwan, Jennifer L; Seitz, Amy E; Fried, Michal; Lee, Kun-Lin; Metenou, Simon; Morrison, Robert; Kabyemela, Edward; Nutman, Thomas B; Prevots, D Rebecca; Duffy, Patrick E

2018-03-01

The disease burden of Wuchereria bancrofti and Plasmodium falciparum malaria is high, particularly in Africa, and co-infection is common. However, the effects of filarial infection on the risk of severe malaria are unknown. We used the remaining serum samples from a large cohort study in Muheza, Tanzania to describe vector-borne filarial sero-reactivity among young children and to identify associations between exposure to filarial parasites and subsequent severe malaria infections. We identified positive filarial antibody responses (as well as positive antibody responses to Strongyloides stercoralis) among infants as young as six months. In addition, we found a significant association between filarial seropositivity at six months of age and subsequent severe malaria. Specifically, infants who developed severe malaria by one year of age were 3.9 times more likely (OR = 3.9, 95% CI: 1.2, 13.0) to have been seropositive for filarial antigen at six months of age compared with infants who did not develop severe malaria.

[Social and family characteristics in children born to women infected by the human immunodeficiency virus].

PubMed

Sanz Aliaga, S A; Sancho Izquierdo, E; Asensi Botet, F; Otero Reigada, M C

2000-01-01

To evaluate the social and family characteristics of children born to women infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). As secondary objectives, to analyse their schooling and the number of hospital admissions and lengths of stay that these children required. A prospective observation study. HIV unit in a children's hospital. all the children recruited from the HIV unit who had their infection status defined during the study period, understood as between the first known case in 1985 and April 1994. The sample included 177 children (62 HIV-infected and 115 not infected). Through an interview the social, family and school variables were collected. On comparison between infected and non-infected children, there were no important differences as to the lack of protection of the new-born (8.1% vs 13%), scant mother-child relationship (31.2% vs 36.5%) or people responsible for the custody of these children. Less schooling and greater problems of school integration were detected in infected cases, with odds ratios of 2.68 (p = 0.004) and 11.36 (p = 0.004), respectively. Children infected also needed more admissions (4.3 +/- 5.7) than the non-infected (1.7 +/- 0.9) (p = 0.001), and more days of hospital stay (75.1 +/- 110.3 vs 23.3 +/- 19.6) (p = 0.0003). Infected children and non-infected children had similar social and family characteristics. However, less schooling, problems of school integration, and more and longer hospital admissions were related to HIV infection in children, and not so much to their status as children of seropositive mothers.

Marching Is for Soldiers: Russian-Born Buriat Children in a Chinese Bilingual School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sartor, Valerie

2015-01-01

This ethnographic study examines the educational struggles of Russian-born Buriat Mongolian children studying in China at a Mongolian/Mandarin school, by emphasizing conflicting educational paradigms between the Russian and Chinese systems. Educational practices are compared. Standardized assessment, teacher-centered classrooms, and group-…

Young Children's Photographs of Measurement in the Home

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacDonald, Amy

2012-01-01

This article explores the use of children's photography as a method for conducting mathematics education research with young children. Collected as part of a study focusing on the experiences with measurement children have at the start of schooling, the photographs presented here were taken by children aged five and six years, from two Australian…

Young Children's Color Preferences in the Interior Environment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Read, Marilyn A.; Upington, Deborah

2009-01-01

This study focuses on children's color preferences in the interior environment. Previous studies highlight young children's preferences for the colors red and blue. The methods of this study used a rank ordering technique and a semi-structured interview process with 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children. Findings reveal that children prefer the color…

Ensuring financial access to hearing AIDS for infants and young children.

PubMed

Limb, Stephanie J; McManus, Margaret A; Fox, Harriette B; White, Karl R; Forsman, Irene

2010-08-01

Many young children with permanent hearing loss do not receive hearing aids and related professional services, in part because of public and private financing limitations. In 2006 the Children's Audiology Financing Workgroup was convened by the National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management to evaluate and make recommendations about public and private financing of hearing aids and related professional services for 0- to 3-year-old children. The workgroup recommended 4 possible strategies for ensuring that all infants and young children with hearing loss have access to appropriate hearing aids and professional services: (1) clarify that the definition of assistive technology, which is a required service under Part C of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), includes not only analog hearing aids but also digital hearing aids with appropriate features as needed by young children with hearing loss; (2) clarify for both state Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Programs that digital hearing aids are almost always the medically necessary type of hearing aid required for infants and young children and should be covered under the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program; (3) encourage the passage of private health insurance legislative mandates to require coverage of appropriate digital hearing aids and related professional services for infants and young children; and (4) establish hearing-aid loaner programs in every state. The costs of providing hearing aids to all 0- to 3-year old children in the United States are estimated here.

Visual perceptual skills in children born with very low birth weights.

PubMed

Davis, Deborah Winders; Burns, Barbara M; Wilkerson, Shirley A; Steichen, Jean J

2005-01-01

A disproportionate number of very low birth weight (VLBW; < or =1500 g) children require special education services and have school-related problems even when they are free from major disabilities and have average intelligence quotient scores. Visual-perceptual problems have been suggested as contributors to deficits in academic performance, but few data are available describing specific visual-perceptual problems. This study was designed to identify specific visual-perceptual skills in VLBW children. Participants were 92 VLBW children aged 4 through 5 years who were free from major disability and appropriate for gestational age at birth. The Test of Visual-Perceptual Skills (non-motor)-Revised was used. Despite intelligent quotient scores in the average range, the majority (63% to 78.3%) of the children performed below age level on all seven subscales of a normed assessment of visual perceptual skills. Results suggest that visual perceptual screening should be considered as a part of routine evaluations of preschool-aged children born prematurely. Early identification of specific deficits could lead to interventions to improve achievement trajectories for these high-risk children.

Serving Young Dual Language Learners in Illinois

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meléndez, Luisiana; Chamberlain, Patricia

2018-01-01

Between 2000 and 2010, the foreign born population in Illinois increased by over 200,000, and the number of young dual language learners (DLLs) also grew. By 2015, DLLs were thought to account for more than a quarter of the state's three- and four-year-olds. In addition, more K-12 children in Illinois were being designated as English learners and…

Developmental Status and Social-Emotional Functioning of Young Children Experiencing Homelessness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haskett, Mary E.; Armstrong, Jenna Montgomery; Tisdale, Jennifer

2016-01-01

The developmental status and social-emotional functioning of young children who are homeless has received inadequate attention in spite of high rates of homelessness among families with young children and the potentially negative impact of homelessness and associated stressors on children's well-being. The aim of this study was to gain…

Elevated Autism Spectrum Disorder Traits in Young Children with OCD.

PubMed

Stewart, Elyse; Cancilliere, Mary Kathryn; Freeman, Jennifer; Wellen, Brianna; Garcia, Abbe; Sapyta, Jeffrey; Franklin, Martin

2016-12-01

Studies have shown a high prevalence of autistic spectrum traits in both children and adults with psychiatric disorders; however the prevalence rate has not yet been investigated in young children with OCD. The aim of the current study was to (1) determine whether ASD traits indicated by the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) and the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) were elevated in young children with OCD who do not have a specific ASD diagnosis and (2) determine if ASD traits were associated with OCD severity. Participants (N = 127) were children ages 5-8 years enrolled in the pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder treatment study for young children (POTS Jr.). Results indicated that the SRS showed elevated autistic traits in the sample and was associated with OCD severity whereas the SCQ did not indicate heightened ASD symptoms. Implications of these results are discussed.

Recovery from stunting and cognitive outcomes in young children: evidence from the South African Birth to Twenty Cohort Study.

PubMed

Casale, D; Desmond, C

2016-04-01

In this study we analyse the implications for cognitive function of recovery from stunting in early childhood. More specifically, we test whether children who met the definition for stunted at age 2, but not at age 5, perform better in cognitive tests than children who remain stunted over this period. The sample is drawn from the Birth to Twenty Cohort Study, a prospective data set of children born in 1990 in urban South Africa. The measure of cognitive function that we use is based on the Revised Denver Prescreening Developmental Questionnaire implemented when the children were age 5. We employ multivariate regression in the analysis to control for child-specific characteristics, socio-economic status, the home environment and caregiver inputs. We find that recovery from stunting is not uncommon among young children in our sample. However, children who recover from stunting by age 5 still perform significantly worse on cognitive tests than children who do not experience early malnutrition, and almost as poorly as children who remain stunted. These findings suggest that the timing of nutritional inputs in the early years is key in a child's cognitive development, with implications for school readiness and achievement.

Young Children Treat Robots as Informants.

PubMed

Breazeal, Cynthia; Harris, Paul L; DeSteno, David; Kory Westlund, Jacqueline M; Dickens, Leah; Jeong, Sooyeon

2016-04-01

Children ranging from 3 to 5 years were introduced to two anthropomorphic robots that provided them with information about unfamiliar animals. Children treated the robots as interlocutors. They supplied information to the robots and retained what the robots told them. Children also treated the robots as informants from whom they could seek information. Consistent with studies of children's early sensitivity to an interlocutor's non-verbal signals, children were especially attentive and receptive to whichever robot displayed the greater non-verbal contingency. Such selective information seeking is consistent with recent findings showing that although young children learn from others, they are selective with respect to the informants that they question or endorse. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

World Class: USBBY's Outstanding International Books for Young People

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Angus, Carolyn

2009-01-01

Some of the world's best children's book artists got together to help Amnesty International celebrate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights' 60th anniversary in "We Are All Born Free," one of the 42 titles recommended by the fourth annual United States Board on Books for Young People's (USBBY) Outstanding International Books…

30 Track Games for Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bell, Garry; Henderson, Colleen

2004-01-01

Whenever teachers of young children get together there will be differences of opinion about how far children should be taught to count. Some will argue that the focus should be on small numbers to 9, building up the notion of what, say, the name 5 means, what it looks like, and how it can be represented. Others argue that with ice blocks retailing…

Impact of neonatal factors and nutrition on kidney size in 5-year-old preterm-born children.

PubMed

Galu, Sorana C; Hascoet, Jean-Michel; Vieux, Rachel

2015-02-01

The aim of this article is to evaluate the influence of neonatal factors on kidney size in 5-year-old preterm-born children. Preterm-born children were examined at 5 years with kidney ultrasound. A total of 20 children were evaluated. Their gestational age (GA) was 29.3 ± 1.5 weeks, birth weight 1,321 ± 323 g. On Day 28, protein intake was (median, range) 2.8 (1.7-3.6 g/kg) g/kg, protein/total calories ratio 2.8 (range, 1.7-3.3 g/100 kcal) g/100 kcal. At 5 years, their systolic blood pressure was 97 mm Hg (range, 84-115 mm Hg). All had normal estimated glomerular filtration rate. Protein intake on Day 28 and protein/calories ratio on Day 28 were associated with a low total relative renal volume, respectively, β =  - 37 ± 15, p = 0.03; β =  - 50 ± 19, p = 0.03, after adjustment on GA, neonatal morbidities, and body mass index (multivariate linear regression). Kidney size was not associated with protein intake at 5 years. Improving protein prescription in the neonatal period could have an impact on kidney size in childhood in preterm-born children. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Young children's contact with the elderly.

PubMed

Sheehan, R

1978-07-01

The present research is an investigation of the frequency and type of contact which young children have had with elderly persons. It is also an examination of the relationship between this contact and children's ability to identify or discriminate elderly persons. Interview data were gathered from children's parents pertaining to experiences which the children had with persons 70 years or older. The same children were also exposed to a series of stimulus discrimination tasks in which they were asked to identify the oldest man from a range of pictures. The research yielded descriptive data pertaining to the contact which children have with the elderly. It also revealed a statistically significant relationship between children's frequency of contact with elderly persons and their ability to identify the elderly.

Family Context and Young Children's Responses to Earthquake

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Proctor, Laura J.; Fauchier, Angele; Oliver, Pamella H.; Ramos, Michelle C.; Rios, Martha A.; Margolin, Gayla

2007-01-01

Background: Family context can affect children's vulnerability to various stresses, but little is known regarding the role of family variables on children's reactions to natural disaster. This prospective study examined the influence of predisaster observed parenting behaviors and postdisaster parental stress on young children's distress following…

Iatrogenic Blood-borne Viral Infections in Refugee Children from War and Transition Zones

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Pediatric infectious disease clinicians in industrialized countries may encounter iatrogenically transmitted HIV, hepatitis B virus, and hepatitis C virus infections in refugee children from Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa. The consequences of political collapse and/or civil war—work migration, prostitution, intravenous drug use, defective public health resources, and poor access to good medical care—all contribute to the spread of blood-borne viruses. Inadequate infection control practices by medical establishments can lead to iatrogenic infection of children. Summaries of 4 cases in refugee children in Australia are a salient reminder of this problem. PMID:23739597

The nature of connections: young fathers and their children.

PubMed

Saleh, Mahasin F; Buzi, Ruth S; Weinman, Maxine L; Smith, Peggy B

2005-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the involvement of young fathers with their children at entry to a fatherhood program and at subsequent follow-up. Thirty-eight young fathers participated in this analysis. Using open-ended questions at intake and subsequent follow-up, they were asked to describe in their own words their relationships with their children. A thematic analysis was used to explore their self-reported statements. Three themes emerged from the analysis: Positive Emotionality, Accessibility, and Engagement. A comparison between thematic categories at intake and follow-up revealed that the most dramatic shift occurred in regard to Engagement. A third of the young fathers shifted from describing Positive Emotionality at intake to the more active process of Engagement at follow-up. The area that showed little change between intake to follow-up was related to Accessibility. These findings may suggest that for young fathers, becoming more involved with their children is a process which can be facilitated by participating in a fatherhood program.

Do Preschool Teachers Perceive Young Children from Immigrant Families Differently?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mevorach, Miriam

2008-01-01

This article describes preschool teachers' espoused mental models (EMMs) or, in other words, their naive understanding of young children's learning. Our research goal was to examine differences within the teachers' EMMs regarding the minds and learning of young children from different cultural backgrounds. The subjects included 18 preschool…

Time to Eat: Improving Mealtimes of Young Children with Autism

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bruns, Deborah A.; Thompson, Stacy

2011-01-01

Many young children with autism exhibit feeding-related difficulties, such as accepting a limited diet, demonstrating texture aversions, or using only specific mealtime utensils. Young children with autism need assistance to acquire skills to improve mealtime behavior, including increased acceptance of a variety of foods (types and textures) at…

Young Children's Preference for Unique Owned Objects

PubMed Central

Gelman, Susan A.; Davidson, Natalie S.

2016-01-01

An important aspect of human thought is the value we place on unique individuals. Adults place higher value on authentic works of art than exact replicas, and young children at times value their original possessions over exact duplicates. What is the scope of this preference in early childhood, and when do children understand its subjective nature? On a series of trials, we asked three-year-olds (N=36) to choose between two toys for either themselves or the researcher: an old (visibly used) toy versus a new (more attractive) toy matched in type and appearance (e.g., old vs. brand-new blanket). Focal pairs contrasted the child's own toy with a matched new object; Control pairs contrasted toys the child had never seen before. Children preferred the old toys for Focal pairs only, and treated their own preferences as not shared by the researcher. By 3 years of age, young children place special value on unique individuals, and understand the subjective nature of that value. PMID:27395441

Cognitive Profile in Young Icelandic Children with Cerebral Palsy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sigurdardottir, Solveig; Eiriksdottir, Audur; Gunnarsdottir, Eva; Meintema, Marrit; Arnadottir, Unnur; Vik, Torstein

2008-01-01

We describe the cognitive profile in a complete national cohort of children with cerebral palsy (CP). One hundred and twenty-seven Icelandic children (67 females, 60 males) with CP, born between 1985 and 2000 and assessed between the ages of 4 and 6 years 6 months (mean age 5y 5mo, SD 6mo), were included in the study. IQ was measured using the…

Allergic contact reaction to antiseptics in very young children.

PubMed

Darrigade, A S; Léauté-Labrèze, C; Boralevi, F; Taïeb, A; Milpied, B

2018-06-19

Contact dermatitis from topical antiseptic use has been reported mostly in adults but rare cases of chlorhexidine contact dermatitis have also been described in young children. To evaluate contact allergic dermatitis to antiseptics in young children. The children mostly referred for a misdiagnose (cellulitis) were patch tested with a selection of the European baseline series, an antiseptics series and the personal topical products used. 14 children (8 boys, 6 girls) received a diagnosis of contact dermatitis to antiseptics between May 2010 and December 2017. The mean age at diagnosis was 38 months (8 months to 8 years), 3 children only had a personal history of atopy. Chlorhexidine gluconate was positive in 7 cases, benzalkonium chloride in 8 cases, and in 4 cases both allergens were positive. This small case series confirm that both chlorhexidine and benzalkonium chloride are implicated in contact dermatitis from antiseptic use in the pediatric population. We emphasize the initial misdiagnose of these patients, the very young age of the children, and the allergenic potential of common antiseptics in non-atopic children. We hypothesize that the systematic use of antiseptics for umbilical cord care could be responsible for the sensitization in newborns. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Promoting and protecting the health of children and young people.

PubMed

Licence, K

2004-11-01

The health-related behaviours adopted by children and young people can have both immediate and long-term health effects. Health promotion interventions that target children and young people can lay the foundations of a healthy lifestyle that may be sustained into adulthood. This paper is based on a selective review of evidence relating to health promotion in childhood, carried out to support the external working group on the 'Healthy Child' module of the Children's National Service Framework. This is a selective review of mainly secondary research. It focuses on injury prevention, support for parenting and the promotion of good mental health, and promoting a healthy diet and physical activity amongst children and young people. In many areas, the quality of primary research into health promotion interventions aimed at children and young people is poor. Interventions are heterogeneous and not described in sufficient detail. Sample sizes tend to be small, and there are commonly problems of bias. Despite these difficulties, there is good evidence for a range of interventions, including (1) area road safety schemes; (2) combining a variety of approaches to the promotion of the use of safety equipment, including legislation and enforcement, loan/assisted purchase/giveaway schemes, education, fitting and maintenance of safety equipment; (3) school-based mental health promotion; (4) parenting support; (5) interventions that promote and facilitate 'lifestyle' activity for children, such as walking and cycling to school, and those that aim to reduce sedentary behaviours such as parent education to reduce the time children spend watching TV and using computers; and (6) controlling advertising of unhealthy food that is aimed at children. There are effective interventions to promote and protect the health of children and young people that require action across the five areas described in the Ottawa Charter. Health, social care and education services have a direct role in the

Vitamin A and Vitamin B-12 Concentrations in Relation to Mortality and Morbidity among Children Born to HIV-Infected Women

PubMed Central

Bosch, Ronald J.; Hunter, David J.; Manji, Karim; Msamanga, Gernard I.; Fawzi, Wafaie W.

2010-01-01

Vitamin A supplementation starting at 6 months of age is an important child survival intervention; however, not much is known about the association between vitamin A status before 6 months and mortality among children born to HIV-infected women. Plasma concentrations of vitamins A and B-12 were available at 6 weeks of age (n = 576 and 529, respectively) for children born to HIV-infected women and they were followed up for morbidity and survival status until 24 months after birth. Children in the highest quartile of vitamin A had a 49% lower risk of death by 24 months of age compared to the lowest quartile (HR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.29–0.90; P-value for trend = 0.01). Higher vitamin A levels were protective in the sub-groups of HIV-infected and un-infected children but this was statistically significant only in the HIV-uninfected subgroup. Higher vitamin A concentrations in plasma are protective against mortality in children born to HIV-infected women. PMID:19502599

Young Children in Intractable Conflicts: The Israeli Case.

PubMed

Nasie, Meytal; Diamond, Aurel Harrison; Bar-Tal, Daniel

2015-10-08

The article examines the political socialization of young Jewish-Israeli children who live under the Israeli-Palestinian intractable conflict. It proposes arguments and presents empirical evidence to suggest that the way in which political socialization of young children happens in this context contributes to the development of conflict-supporting narratives of ethos of conflict and collective memory by the youngest generation. As a result, the conflict solidifies adherence to these narratives in adulthood, thereby serving as a major obstacle to the processes of peace-making and peace-building. Specifically, as evidence for showing how the political socialization works in Israel, a series of studies conducted in Israeli kindergartens and elementary schools are presented. These studies recount the contents acquired by young children, as well as contents delivered by teachers, related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This indicates the serious consequences of acquiring conflict-supporting narratives at an early age in societies involved in intractable conflict. © 2015 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

Visual Impairment in Infants and Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Teplin, Stuart W.

1995-01-01

This article reviews the structure, development, function, and assessment of the visual system and then considers: common eye problems of young children with visual impairment; impacts of severe impairment on child development; and the roles of early intervention professionals, ophthalmologists, and pediatricians in working with these children and…

Early Childhood Teachers as Socializers of Young Children's Emotional Competence

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denham, Susanne A.; Bassett, Hideko H.; Zinsser, Katherine

2012-01-01

Young children's emotional competence--regulation of emotional expressiveness and experience when necessary, and knowledge of their own and other's emotions--is crucial for social and academic (i.e., school) success. Thus, it is important to understand the mechanisms of how young children develop emotional competence. Both parents and teachers are…

Friendship in Young Children: Construction of a Behavioural Sociometric Method

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Hoogdalem, Anne-Greth; Singer, Elly; Eek, Anneloes; Heesbeen, Daniëlle

2013-01-01

We need methods to measure friendship among very young children to study the beginnings of friendship and the impact of experiences with friendship for later development. This article presents an overview of methods for measuring very young children's friendships. A behavioural sociometric method was constructed to study degrees of friendship…

Young Children Making Sense of Racial and Ethnic Differences: A Sociocultural Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Caryn C.

2011-01-01

The research on young children and race has previously relied on Piagetian developmental concepts to describe ages and stages in the development of children's racial and ethnic understandings, leaving uninvestigated the situated meaning and consequences of children's learning. Drawing from a qualitative study of young children's (ages 3.5 to 5.5)…

Speed of Language Comprehension at 18 Months Old Predicts School-Relevant Outcomes at 54 Months Old in Children Born Preterm.

PubMed

Marchman, Virginia A; Loi, Elizabeth C; Adams, Katherine A; Ashland, Melanie; Fernald, Anne; Feldman, Heidi M

2018-04-01

Identifying which preterm (PT) children are at increased risk of language and learning differences increases opportunities for participation in interventions that improve outcomes. Speed in spoken language comprehension at early stages of language development requires information processing skills that may form the foundation for later language and school-relevant skills. In children born full-term, speed of comprehending words in an eye-tracking task at 2 years old predicted language and nonverbal cognition at 8 years old. Here, we explore the extent to which speed of language comprehension at 1.5 years old predicts both verbal and nonverbal outcomes at 4.5 years old in children born PT. Participants were children born PT (n = 47; ≤32 weeks gestation). Children were tested in the "looking-while-listening" task at 18 months old, adjusted for prematurity, to generate a measure of speed of language comprehension. Parent report and direct assessments of language were also administered. Children were later retested on a test battery of school-relevant skills at 4.5 years old. Speed of language comprehension at 18 months old predicted significant unique variance (12%-31%) in receptive vocabulary, global language abilities, and nonverbal intelligence quotient (IQ) at 4.5 years, controlling for socioeconomic status, gestational age, and medical complications of PT birth. Speed of language comprehension remained uniquely predictive (5%-12%) when also controlling for children's language skills at 18 months old. Individual differences in speed of spoken language comprehension may serve as a marker for neuropsychological processes that are critical for the development of school-relevant linguistic skills and nonverbal IQ in children born PT.

A profile of technology-assisted children and young people in north west England.

PubMed

Kirk, Susan

2008-11-01

To obtain a profile of children and young people in north west England who needed the ongoing support of medical technology. As part of a larger study, 28 community children's nursing teams in the north west of England were asked to profile the children and young people on their caseloads who needed the ongoing support of medical technology. Twenty-five teams returned data, from which a total of 591 children and young people were identified. The most prevalent technology used was gastrostomy/jejunostomy, which was used by more than two-thirds of the sample. Over a quarter of the children/young people were supported by more than one technology. The majority of the children/young people were seven years old or younger Although most had used the technology for five years or less (71 per cent), there were 164 children/ young people who had been technology-assisted for six or more years. Although there are limitations in this study, the data is nevertheless useful for planning future services and support, including identifying the numbers of young people who will be transferring to adult services. A more efficient means of collecting these data would be to systematically record long-term conditions and technology assistance in electronic health records.

Education Facilities for Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meade, Anne; Ross, Fiona

2006-01-01

Educational buildings and grounds can provide a supportive and stimulating environment for the learning process as well as contribute to greater community needs. These issues were addressed at an international conference entitled "Making Space: Architecture and Design for Young Children". Described here are the importance of outdoor…

Social Perception in Children Born at Very Low Birthweight and Its Relationship with Social/Behavioral Outcomes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williamson, Kathryn E.; Jakobson, Lorna S.

2014-01-01

Background: Research has shown that children born very prematurely are at substantially elevated risk for social and behavioral difficulties similar to those seen in full-term children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Methods: To gain insight into core deficits that may underlie these difficulties, in this study, we assessed the social…

Prevalence and Correlates of Depressive Symptoms in Mothers of Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hall, Lynne A.

Mothers of young children are at risk for depressive symptoms due to their gender and status as parents of young children. Accordingly, this study undertook to assess the prevalence of depressive symptoms in a sample of 196 mothers of 5- and 6-year-old children; to identify sociodemographic correlates of depressive symptoms among these women; and…

Increased congenital heart defects in children born to women with systemic lupus erythematosus: results from the offspring of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Mothers Registry Study.

PubMed

Vinet, Évelyne; Pineau, Christian A; Scott, Susan; Clarke, Ann E; Platt, Robert W; Bernatsky, Sasha

2015-01-13

In a large population-based study, we aimed to determine whether children born to women with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have an increased risk of congenital heart defects (CHDs) in comparison with children born to women without SLE. The Offspring of SLE Mothers Registry (OSLER) includes all women who had ≥1 hospitalization for delivery after SLE diagnosis, identified through Quebec's healthcare databases (1989-2009), and a randomly selected control group of women, matched ≥4:1 for age and year of delivery. We identified children born live to SLE mothers and their matched controls, and ascertained CHD based on ≥1 hospitalization or physician visit with relevant diagnostic codes, within the first 12 months of life. We performed multivariable logistic regression analyses, using the generalized estimating equation method, to adjust for relevant covariates. Five hundred nine women with SLE had 719 children, whereas 5824 matched controls had 8493 children. In comparison with controls, children born to women with SLE experienced more CHD (5.2% [95% confidence interval (CI), 3.7-7.1] versus 1.9% [95% CI, 1.6-2.2], difference 3.3% [95% CI, 1.9-5.2]). In multivariable analyses, children born to women with SLE had a substantially increased risk of CHD (odds ratio, 2.62; 95% CI, 1.77-3.88) in comparison with controls. In addition, in comparison with controls, offspring of SLE mothers had a substantially increased risk of having a CHD repair procedure (odds ratio, 5.82; 95% CI, 1.77-19.09). In comparison with children from the general population, children born to women with SLE have an increased risk of CHD, and an increased risk of having a CHD repair procedure, as well. © 2014 American Heart Association, Inc.

Emergence of Lying in Very Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Evans, Angela D.; Lee, Kang

2013-01-01

Lying is a pervasive human behavior. Evidence to date suggests that from the age of 42 months onward, children become increasingly capable of telling lies in various social situations. However, there is limited experimental evidence regarding whether very young children will tell lies spontaneously. The present study investigated the emergence of…

Young Children's Trust in Overtly Misleading Advice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heyman, Gail D.; Sritanyaratana, Lalida; Vanderbilt, Kimberly E.

2013-01-01

The ability of 3- and 4-year-old children to disregard advice from an overtly misleading informant was investigated across five studies (total "n" =212). Previous studies have documented limitations in young children's ability to reject misleading advice. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that these limitations are primarily…

Early parenting, represented family relationships, and externalizing behavior problems in children born preterm.

PubMed

Poehlmann, Julie; Burnson, Cynthia; Weymouth, Lindsay A

2014-01-01

Through assessment of 173 preterm infants and their mothers at hospital discharge and at 9, 16, 24, 36, and 72 months, the study examined early parenting, attachment security, effortful control, and children's representations of family relationships in relation to subsequent externalizing behavior problems. Less intrusive early parenting predicted more secure attachment, better effortful control skills, and fewer early behavior problems, although it did not directly relate to the structural or content characteristics of children's represented family relationships. Children with higher effortful control scores at 24 months had more coherent family representations at 36 months. Moreover, children who exhibited less avoidance in their family representations at 36 months had fewer mother-reported externalizing behavior problems at 72 months. The study suggests that early parenting quality and avoidance in children's represented relationships are important for the development of externalizing behavior problems in children born preterm.

fMRI: blood oxygen level-dependent activation during a working memory-selective attention task in children born extremely preterm.

PubMed

Griffiths, Silja Torvik; Gundersen, Hilde; Neto, Emanuel; Elgen, Irene; Markestad, Trond; Aukland, Stein M; Hugdahl, Kenneth

2013-08-01

Extremely preterm (EPT)/extremely low-birth-weight (ELBW) children attaining school age and adolescence often have problems with executive functions such as working memory and selective attention. Our aim was to investigate a hypothesized difference in blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) activation during a selective attention-working memory task in EPT/ELBW children as compared with term-born controls. A regional cohort of 28 EPT/ELBW children and 28 term-born controls underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning at 11 y of age while performing a combined Stroop n-back task. Group differences in BOLD activation were analyzed with Statistical Parametric Mapping 8 analysis software package, and reaction times (RTs) and response accuracy (RA) were compared in a multifactorial ANOVA test. The BOLD activation pattern in the preterm group involved the same areas (cingulate, prefrontal, and parietal cortexes), but all areas displayed significantly less activation than those in the control group, particularly when the cognitive load was increased. The RA results corresponded with the activation data in that the preterm group had significantly fewer correct responses. No group difference was found regarding RTs. Children born EPT/ELBW displayed reduced working memory and selective attention capacity as compared with term-born controls. These impairments had neuronal correlates with reduced BOLD activation in areas responsible for online stimulus monitoring, working memory, and cognitive control.

DIETARY EXPOSURES OF YOUNG CHILDREN, PART 3: MODELLING

EPA Science Inventory

A deterministic model was used to model dietary exposure of young children. Parameters included pesticide residue on food before handling, surface pesticide loading, transfer efficiencies and children's activity patterns. Three components of dietary pesticide exposure were includ...

Implicit and explicit motor sequence learning in children born very preterm.

PubMed

Jongbloed-Pereboom, Marjolein; Janssen, Anjo J W M; Steiner, K; Steenbergen, Bert; Nijhuis-van der Sanden, Maria W G

2017-01-01

Motor skills can be learned explicitly (dependent on working memory (WM)) or implicitly (relatively independent of WM). Children born very preterm (VPT) often have working memory deficits. Explicit learning may be compromised in these children. This study investigated implicit and explicit motor learning and the role of working memory in VPT children and controls. Three groups (6-9 years) participated: 20 VPT children with motor problems, 20 VPT children without motor problems, and 20 controls. A nine button sequence was learned implicitly (pressing the lighted button as quickly as possible) and explicitly (discovering the sequence via trial-and-error). Children learned implicitly and explicitly, evidenced by decreased movement duration of the sequence over time. In the explicit condition, children also reduced the number of errors over time. Controls made more errors than VPT children without motor problems. Visual WM had positive effects on both explicit and implicit performance. VPT birth and low motor proficiency did not negatively affect implicit or explicit learning. Visual WM was positively related to both implicit and explicit performance, but did not influence learning curves. These findings question the theoretical difference between implicit and explicit learning and the proposed role of visual WM therein. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Young Children's Enactments of Human Rights in Early Childhood Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quennerstedt, Ann

2016-01-01

This paper explores ways in which human rights become part of and affect young children's everyday practices in early childhood education and, more particularly, how very young children enact human rights in the preschool setting. The study is conducted in a Swedish preschool through observations of the everyday practices of a group of children…

Young Children's Reactions to Mothers' Disclosure of Maternal HIV+ Serostatus

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Murphy, Debra A.; Roberts, Kathleen J.; Hoffman, Dannie

2006-01-01

Little is known about the impact of maternal disclosure of HIV-positive serostatus on young children. The objective of this study was to explore this topic, utilizing in-depth qualitative interviews. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 47 mothers who had disclosed to their young, well child, and with the children. The most prevalent child…

Child Rearing in America: Challenges Facing Parents with Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Halfon, Neal, Ed.; McLearn, Kathryn Taaffe, Ed.; Schuster, Mark A., Ed.

In the wake of intense national interest in very young children, this volume presents an examination of the findings of the Commonwealth Survey of Parents with Young Children, as analyzed by scholars from diverse disciplines. What emerges from this analysis is a picture of the complex forces that influence families and child rearing in the…

Teaching Time Concepts to Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Muir, Sharon Pray

1986-01-01

Presents many activity ideas for teaching young children about time using chronological events, clocks, and calendars. Jerome Bruner's enactive-iconic-symbolic sequence of concept development is used as a guide for these learning experiences. (LP)

Daily physical activity in young children and their parents: A descriptive study

PubMed Central

Cantell, Marja; Crawford, Susan G; Dewey, Deborah

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: Little is known about physical activity (PA) in young children and about the relationship between their PA and that of their parents. OBJECTIVE: The main purpose of the present study (Y-Be-Active) was to examine the daily PA levels of young children and their parents, and to explore the relationship between children’s and parents’ PA. METHOD: Fifty-four children (mean age 4.3 years) and their parents (54 mothers, mean age 35.8 years; 50 fathers, mean age 38.2 years) wore accelerometers for three weekdays and two weekend days. Parents also completed questionnaires on family sociodemographics and PA habits. RESULTS: Children spent most of their time in light PA. Almost all children attained 30 min of daily moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), and most boys and girls attained 60 min of daily MVPA on weekdays. Only 60% of fathers and approximately one-half of mothers attained 30 min of daily MVPA on weekdays and weekend days. Children’s and fathers’ PA were correlated on weekends. Few parents (20% to 30%) participated regularly in organised PA with their child. Fathers’ involvement in PA with their children was associated with higher MVPA in children. CONCLUSIONS: Many young children and parents did not meet current Canadian recommendations for daily PA. Parental involvement in PA with their young children, particularly the involvement of fathers, appeared to promote higher levels of MVPA in young children. PMID:23450045

"Our Guinea Pig Is Dead!" Young Children Cope with Death.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thomason, Nita Davison

1999-01-01

Describes how children develop a concept of death, and presents suggestions for classroom experiences to help young children cope with death. Considers children's attendance at funerals and how to answer children's questions about death. Lists 14 children's books about death. (KB)

Parents' descriptions of young children's dissociative reactions after trauma.

PubMed

Cintron, Gabriela; Salloum, Alison; Blair-Andrews, Zoe; Storch, Eric A

2017-10-09

There is limited research on the phenomenology of how young children who have been exposed to trauma express the intrusive symptom of dissociative reactions. The current qualitative study utilized interviews from a semi-structured diagnostic clinical interview with 74 caregivers of young children (ages 3 to 7) who were exposed to trauma to identify parents' descriptions of their children's dissociative reactions during a clinical interview. Based on results from the interview, 45.9% of the children had dissociative reactions (8.5% had flashbacks and 41.9% had dissociative episodes). Interviews were transcribed to identify themes of dissociative reactions in young children. Common themes to flashbacks and dissociative episodes included being triggered, being psychologically in their own world (e.g., spaced out and shut down), and displaying visible signs (e.g., crying and screaming). For flashbacks, caregivers reported that it seemed as if the child was re-experiencing the trauma (e.g., yelling specific words and having body responses). For dissociative episodes, caregivers noted that the child not only seemed psychologically somewhere else (e.g., distant and not there) but also would be physically positioned somewhere else (e.g., sitting and not responding). Caregivers also expressed their own reactions to the child's dissociative episode due to not understanding what was occurring, and trying to interrupt the occurrences (e.g., calling out to the child). Themes, descriptions, and phrases to describe dissociative reactions in young children after trauma can be used to help parents and professionals more accurately identify occurrences of dissociative reactions.

Cooperative Activities in Young Children and Chimpanzees

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Warneken, Felix; Chen, Frances; Tomasello, Michael

2006-01-01

Human children 18-24 months of age and 3 young chimpanzees interacted in 4 cooperative activities with a human adult partner. The human children successfully participated in cooperative problem-solving activities and social games, whereas the chimpanzees were uninterested in the social games. As an experimental manipulation, in each task the adult…

Young Children's Automatic Encoding of Social Categories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weisman, Kara; Johnson, Marissa V.; Shutts, Kristin

2015-01-01

The present research investigated young children's automatic encoding of two social categories that are highly relevant to adults: gender and race. Three- to 6-year-old participants learned facts about unfamiliar target children who varied in either gender or race and were asked to remember which facts went with which targets. When participants…

Screen Media and Young Children: Who Benefits?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cardany, Audrey Berger

2010-01-01

Since the airing of "Sesame Street" in 1985, television produced for children has expanded to more television shows and educational media that includes videos, DVDs, and computer products. Viewing screen media is pervasive in the environments of young children, and companies are designing products for our youngest viewers--infants and toddlers.…

Subsyllabic Unit Preference in Young Chinese Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wang, Min; Cheng, Chenxi

2008-01-01

We reported three experiments investigating subsyllabic unit preference in young Chinese children. In Experiment 1, a Chinese sound similarity judgment task was designed in which 48 pair of stimuli varied in terms of shared subsyllabic units (i.e., vowel, body, rime, onset-coda). Grade 1 Chinese-speaking monolingual children judged pairs with…

Iron status of young children in Europe.

PubMed

van der Merwe, Liandré F; Eussen, Simone R

2017-12-01

Iron deficiency (ID) is common in young children aged 6-36 mo. Although the hazards associated with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) are well known, concerns about risks associated with excess iron intake in young children are emerging. To characterize iron status in Europe, we describe the prevalence of ID, IDA, iron repletion, and excess stores with the use of published data from a systematic review on iron intake and deficiency rates, combined with other selected iron status data in young European children. Various definitions for ID and IDA were applied across studies. ID prevalence varied depending on socioeconomic status and type of milk fed (i.e., human or cow milk or formula). Without regard to these factors, ID was reported in 3-48% of children aged ≥12 mo across the countries. For 6- to 12-mo-old infants, based on studies that did not differentiate these factors, ID prevalence was 4-18%. IDA was <5% in most studies in Northern and Western Europe but was considerably higher in Eastern Europe (9-50%). According to current iron status data from a sample of healthy Western European children aged 12-36 mo, 69% were iron replete, and the 97.5th percentile for serum ferritin (SF) was 64.3 μg/L. In another sample, 79% of 24-mo-old children were iron replete, and the 97.5th percentile for SF was 57.3 μg/L. Average iron intake in most countries studied was close to or below the UK's Recommended Dietary Allowance. In conclusion, even in healthy European children aged 6-36 mo, ID is still common. In Western European populations for whom data were available, approximately three-quarters of children were found to be iron replete, and excess iron stores (SF >100 μg/L) did not appear to be a concern. Consensus on the definitions of iron repletion and excess stores, as well as on ID and IDA, is needed. © 2017 American Society for Nutrition.

Effective nursing care of children and young people outside hospital.

PubMed

Whiting, Lisa; Caldwell, Chris; Donnelly, Mary; Martin, Debbie; Whiting, Mark

2015-06-01

To assess the preparation required to ensure a workforce of nurses who can provide high quality out-of-hospital services for children and young people. Using mixed methods, questionnaires were sent to young people and community children's nursing teams, interviews were conducted with academic staff and clinical nurses, and focus groups were undertaken with pre-registration children's nursing students. Nurses' communication skills and clinical abilities were most important to young people. There is a range of opinions about optimum out-of-hospital clinical experience. Pre- and post-qualification education and recruitment in this area, therefore, need attention. Out-of-hospital care presents problems, but is developing rapidly. Adequate, updated training, supervision and resources are needed.

Classroom Pets and Young Children: Supporting Early Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meadan, Hedda; Jegatheesan, Brinda

2010-01-01

Many young children have a natural attraction to and curiosity about animals. They like to observe, touch, talk to, and ask questions about them. Teachers and parents both can use this broad interest to facilitate children's development and learning in a variety of domains. Research shows that children across ages find emotional comfort in their…

Teething & Dental Hygiene for Young Children

MedlinePlus

... Living Listen Español Text Size Email Print Share Dental Health & Hygiene for Young Children Page Content Article ... and lead to future dental problems. Teaching Good Dental Habits The best way to protect your child's ...

Involving children and young people in clinical research through the forum of a European Young Persons' Advisory Group: needs and challenges.

PubMed

Gaillard, Segolene; Malik, Salma; Preston, Jenny; Escalera, Begonya Nafria; Dicks, Pamela; Touil, Nathalie; Mardirossian, Sandrine; Claverol-Torres, Joana; Kassaï, Behrouz

2018-02-19

Children and young people are seen as fundamental to the design and delivery of clinical research as active and reflective participants. In Europe, involvement of children and young people in clinical research is promoted extensively in order to engage young people in research as partners and to give them a voice to raise their own issues or opinions and for their involvement in planning and decision making in addition to learning research skills. Children and young people can be trained in clinical research through participation in young person advisory groups (YPAGs). Members of YPAGs assist other children and young people to learn about clinical research and share their experience and point of view with researchers, thereby possibly influencing all phases of research including the development and prioritization of research questions, design and methods, recruitment plans, and strategies for results dissemination. In the long term, the expansion of YPAGs in Europe will serve as a driving force for refining pediatric clinical research. It will help in a better definition of research projects according to the patients' needs. Furthermore, direct engagement of children and young people in research will be favorable to both researchers and young people. © 2018 Société Française de Pharmacologie et de Thérapeutique.

Healthy Young Children: A Manual for Programs, 4th Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aronson, Susan S., Ed.

Noting that the health component of child care should be planned to respond to the developmental patterns of young children, this manual was developed as a reference and resource guide for program directors and teachers of young children and can be used as a textbook for adult learners. The manual, based on national standards and reviewed by…

Stretching and Young Children: Should We or Shouldn't We?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mally, Kristi K.

2006-01-01

The purpose of this article is to continue the discussion of "should we or shouldn't we?" Specifically, this article addresses whether or not young children need to spend time participating in static stretching activities during physical education class. Is it a worthwhile use of already limited time to ask young children to stretch? Do they need…

Language development in preschool children born after asymmetrical intrauterine growth retardation.

PubMed

Simić Klarić, Andrea; Kolundžić, Zdravko; Galić, Slavka; Mejaški Bošnjak, Vlatka

2012-03-01

After intrauterine growth retardation, many minor neurodevelopmental disorders may occur, especially in the motor skills domain, language and speech development, and cognitive functions. The assessment of language development and impact of postnatal head growth in preschool children born with asymmetrical intrauterine growth retardation. Examinees were born at term with birth weight below the 10th percentile for gestational age, parity and gender. Mean age at the time of study was six years and four months. The control group was matched according to chronological and gestational age, gender and maternal education with mean age six years and five months. There were 50 children with intrauterine growth retardation and 50 controls, 28 girls and 22 boys in each group. For the assessment of language development Reynell Developmental Language Scale, the Naming test and Mottier test were performed. There were statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) in language comprehension, total expressive language (vocabulary, structure, content), naming skills and non-words repetition. Statistically significant positive correlations were found between relative growth of the head [(Actual head circumference - head circumference at birth)/(Body weight - birth weight)] and language outcome. Children with neonatal complications had lower results (p < 0.05) in language comprehension and total expressive language. Intrauterine growth retardation has a negative impact on language development which is evident in preschool years. Slow postnatal head growth is correlated with poorer language outcome. Neonatal complications were negatively correlated with language comprehension and total expressive language. Copyright © 2011 European Paediatric Neurology Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Fact Sheet: Vulnerable Young Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shaw, Evelyn, Comp.; Goode, Sue, Comp.

2008-01-01

This fact sheet provides data on infants, toddlers and young children who are experiencing high stress as a result of a number of risk factors specifically identified in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004), including substantiated abuse or neglect, foster care placement, homelessness, exposure to family…

Sex Education with Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koblinsky, Sally; And Others

1980-01-01

Discusses guidelines (developed by the Oregon State University Early Childhood Sex Education Project) for developing teacher-parent cooperation in providing sex education to young children. The guidelines concern how to talk about body differences and body functions; how to deal with masturbation, sex play and obscene language; and how to involve…

Promoting Creativity in Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Honig, Alice Sterling

This paper discusses creativity in young children and what teachers can do to support and promote it. Topics addressed in the paper include: (1) teacher interest in promoting creativity; (2) defining creativity; (3) creativity in the socioemotional domain; (4) the relationship between creativity and empathy for others; (4) bibliotherapy; (5)…

Games Children Play: The Effects of Media Violence on Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wellisch, Mimi

2000-01-01

Noting that most children living in Australia have access to a television, video games, and computers and are influenced by the content of their viewing and interactive games, this report examines the impact of media violence on young children. Topics discussed include the recognition of violence on television and video/computer games, reasons for…

Perspectives of Young Children: How Do They Really Think?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Costley, Kevin C.

2010-01-01

In his monumental research, although Piaget primarily relayed information about children's developmental stages of cognitive growth, Marian Marion goes on to discuss not only the developmental stages, yet focuses on how children think. In her textbook, "Guidance of Young Children", Marion conveys how teachers need to understand children and help…

A Sense of Autonomy in Young Children's Special Places

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Green, Carie

2013-01-01

Early childhood is a significant time when children begin to develop their place identity. As they discover their environment, young children claim special places in which to construct their own experiences. In exploring ways to connect children with place, particularly nature, caregivers need to consider children's place perspectives in the…

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR CATEGORIZING YOUNG CHILDREN'S EATING BEHAVIORS

EPA Science Inventory

Recent studies of total dietary ingestion of common indoor contaminants have demonstrated that young children's behaviors while eating can lead to a significant source of food contamination. The difference between children eating their food items with or without their hands wh...

Early electrophysiological markers of atypical language processing in prematurely born infants.

PubMed

Paquette, Natacha; Vannasing, Phetsamone; Tremblay, Julie; Lefebvre, Francine; Roy, Marie-Sylvie; McKerral, Michelle; Lepore, Franco; Lassonde, Maryse; Gallagher, Anne

2015-12-01

Because nervous system development may be affected by prematurity, many prematurely born children present language or cognitive disorders at school age. The goal of this study is to investigate whether these impairments can be identified early in life using electrophysiological auditory event-related potentials (AERPs) and mismatch negativity (MMN). Brain responses to speech and non-speech stimuli were assessed in prematurely born children to identify early electrophysiological markers of language and cognitive impairments. Participants were 74 children (41 full-term, 33 preterm) aged 3, 12, and 36 months. Pre-attentional auditory responses (MMN and AERPs) were assessed using an oddball paradigm, with speech and non-speech stimuli presented in counterbalanced order between participants. Language and cognitive development were assessed using the Bayley Scale of Infant Development, Third Edition (BSID-III). Results show that preterms as young as 3 months old had delayed MMN response to speech stimuli compared to full-terms. A significant negative correlation was also found between MMN latency to speech sounds and the BSID-III expressive language subscale. However, no significant differences between full-terms and preterms were found for the MMN to non-speech stimuli, suggesting preserved pre-attentional auditory discrimination abilities in these children. Identification of early electrophysiological markers for delayed language development could facilitate timely interventions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Young Children Prefer and Remember Satisfying Explanations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frazier, Brandy N.; Gelman, Susan A.; Wellman, Henry M.

2016-01-01

Research with preschool children has shown that explanations are important to them in that they actively seek explanations in their conversations with adults. But what sorts of explanations do they prefer, and what, if anything, do young children learn from the explanations they receive? Following a preliminary study with adults (N = 67) to…

Region-Specific Slowing of Alpha Oscillations is Associated with Visual-Perceptual Abilities in Children Born Very Preterm

PubMed Central

Doesburg, Sam M.; Moiseev, Alexander; Herdman, Anthony T.; Ribary, Urs; Grunau, Ruth E.

2013-01-01

Children born very preterm (≤32 weeks gestational age) without major intellectual or neurological impairments often express selective deficits in visual-perceptual abilities. The alterations in neurophysiological development underlying these problems, however, remain poorly understood. Recent research has indicated that spontaneous alpha oscillations are slowed in children born very preterm, and that atypical alpha-mediated functional network connectivity may underlie selective developmental difficulties in visual-perceptual ability in this group. The present study provides the first source-resolved analysis of slowing of spontaneous alpha oscillations in very preterm children, indicating alterations in a distributed set of brain regions concentrated in areas of posterior parietal and inferior temporal regions associated with visual perception, as well as prefrontal cortical regions and thalamus. We also uniquely demonstrate that slowing of alpha oscillations is associated with selective difficulties in visual-perceptual ability in very preterm children. These results indicate that region-specific slowing of alpha oscillations contribute to selective developmental difficulties prevalent in this population. PMID:24298250

Environmental impact on young children's participation in home-based activities.

PubMed

Albrecht, Erin C; Khetani, Mary A

2017-04-01

To test the effect of child, family, and environmental factors on young children's participation in home-based activities. Caregivers of young children were recruited using convenience and snowball sampling. Participants were 395 caregivers of children (222 males, 173 females) aged from 1 month to 5 years and 11 months. Demographic items and the home section of the Young Children's Participation and Environment Measure were administered online, followed by completion of the daily activities, mobility, and social/cognitive domains of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory Computer Adaptive Test by telephone interview. A structural equation model fitted the data well (comparative fit index=0.91) and explained 31.2% of the variance in perceived environmental support and 42.5% of the variance in home involvement. Functional limitations and performance had an indirect effect on young children's participation through their effect on perceived environmental support. Specifically, fewer functional limitations and higher task performance were associated with greater environmental support, which in turn predicted higher levels of home involvement. Results suggest the importance of a young child's functional abilities and task performance on caregiver perceptions of environmental support at home, and the impact of environmental support on a child's participation in home-based activities during the early childhood period. Results warrant replication with more diverse samples to evaluate model generalizability. © 2016 The Authors. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Mac Keith Press.

Young children's preference for unique owned objects.

PubMed

Gelman, Susan A; Davidson, Natalie S

2016-10-01

An important aspect of human thought is the value we place on unique individuals. Adults place higher value on authentic works of art than exact replicas, and young children at times value their original possessions over exact duplicates. What is the scope of this preference in early childhood, and when do children understand its subjective nature? On a series of trials, we asked three-year-olds (N=36) to choose between two toys for either themselves or the researcher: an old (visibly used) toy vs. a new (more attractive) toy matched in type and appearance (e.g., old vs. brand-new blanket). Focal pairs contrasted the child's own toy with a matched new object; Control pairs contrasted toys the child had never seen before. Children preferred the old toys for Focal pairs only, and treated their own preferences as not shared by the researcher. By 3years of age, young children place special value on unique individuals, and understand the subjective nature of that value. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Acute Stress Symptoms in Young Children with Burns

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stoddard, Frederick J.; Saxe, Glenn; Ronfeldt, Heidi; Drake, Jennifer E.; Burns, Jennifer; Edgren, Christy; Sheridan, Robert

2006-01-01

Objective: Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms are a focus of much research with older children, but little research has been conducted with young children, who account for about 50% of all pediatric burn injuries. This is a 3-year study of 12- to 48-month-old acutely burned children to assess acute traumatic stress outcomes. The aims were to…

The Influence of Media on Young Children's Development

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wartella, Ellen

2012-01-01

Ellen Wartella, PhD, a leading scholar of the role of media in children's development, responds to questions about the role of media in the lives of very young children. She discusses how technology is having an impact on parents and children and provides some context for how parents and caregivers can make informed decisions about using media…

Secrets and Disclosures: How Young Children Handle Secrets

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Anagnostaki, Lida; Wright, Michael J.; Papathanasiou, Athanasia

2013-01-01

The authors examined the influence of content and verbal cues on young children's understanding of secret information and of its disclosure. Participants were 209 5- and 6-year-old children in an experiment where a puppet, named Zinc, was the protagonist. Children were asked to whom Zinc would disclose a list of pieces of information, some of…

[Bioelectrical activity of the myocardium in children born to parents irradiated during the Chernobyl disaster with isolated abnormal chords of the left ventricle].

PubMed

Kondrashova, V H

2010-01-01

A total 156 children of the main group (children born to parents irradiated during the Chernobyl disaster), who according to echocardiography revealed a different number of isolated abnormal chords of the left ventricle, 20 healthy children, 24 children of nosological control group and 50 children of referent group have been observed. It was found that isolated AHLV in children born to irradiated parents, was associated with changes in standard ECG, reflecting the presence of arrhythmias or predictors of their development. No significant differences in subgroups of children with different number of isolated AHLV have been established. Children with isolated AHLV born to parents irradiated during the Chernobyl accident, as all patients with minor structural anomalies of the heart, should be refered to a risk group in connection with the possibility of the development, in the first place, ventricular extrasystoles, paroxysmal ventricular tachycardia. Early diagnosis of isolated AHLV will allow to assess the outlook for further course of the disease and develop a plan of treatment and preventive measures.

Characteristics of young children exposed to violence: the safe start demonstration project.

PubMed

Kaufman, Joy S; Ortega, Sandra; Schewe, Paul A; Kracke, Kristen

2011-07-01

The Safe Start demonstration projects, funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) under the first phase of the Safe Start initiative, are primarily designed to influence change at the systems or macrolevels to reduce the incidence of and impact of exposure to violence for children aged birth to 6 years; direct services are also provided to young children and their families who were exposed to violence. The data presented in this article come from 10 communities that submitted data regarding the characteristics of young children exposed to violence to OJJDP. These data represent families who are typically not represented in the databases of state child protective services programs but instead have been identified by domestic violence advocates, early care and education providers, family members, court personnel, police, and other social service personnel as families with young children in need of intervention due to violence exposure.The purpose of this article is to describe the characteristics of young children and their parents who seek help for psychosocial problems related to exposure to family and community violence. Results indicate that one quarter of the children and nearly half of their parents evidenced clinical levels of stress, suggesting the need to intervene at the family level as well as at the individual level when working with young children exposed to violence. The information presented, including the extent of exposure to violence, the multiple types of violence to which children are exposed, the impact of this exposure on young children and their families, and the multiple ways in which families exposed to violence come to the attention of service providers is useful for policy makers and service providers who are interested in breaking the cycle of violence by meeting the needs of the children exposed to violence and their families.

Effects of War, Terrorism and Armed Conflict on Young Children: A Systematic Review.

PubMed

Slone, Michelle; Mann, Shiri

2016-12-01

Millions of children have been maimed, displaced, orphaned and killed in modern warfare that targets civilian populations. Several reviews have documented the impact of political trauma on children's mental health but none has focused specifically on young children (ages 0-6). Since developmental factors influence the young child's perception and experience of traumatic events, this developmental period is characterized by a unique spectrum of responses to political trauma. This systematic review, comprising 35 studies that included a total of 4365 young children, examined the effects of exposure to war, conflict and terrorism on young children and the influence of parental factors on these effects. Results showed that effects include PTSD and post-traumatic stress symptoms, behavioral and emotional symptoms, sleep problems, disturbed play, and psychosomatic symptoms. Correlations emerged between parental and children's psychopathology and, additionally, family environment and parental functioning emerged as moderators of the exposure-outcome association for children.

Neonatal outcome and congenital malformations in children born after ICSI with testicular or epididymal sperm: a controlled national cohort study.

PubMed

Fedder, J; Loft, A; Parner, E T; Rasmussen, S; Pinborg, A

2013-01-01

Does neonatal outcome including congenital malformations in children born after ICSI with epididymal and testicular sperm [testicular sperm extraction (TESE)/percutaneous epididymal sperm aspiration (PESA)/testicular sperm aspiration (TESA) (TPT)] differ from neonatal outcome in children born after ICSI with ejaculated sperm, IVF and natural conception (NC)? Children born after TPT have similar neonatal outcome, including total malformation rates, as have children born after ICSI and IVF with ejaculated sperm. Testing for variance over the four groups may indicate smaller differences in specific malformation rates with TPT as the highest risk group. Regarding neonatal outcome as well as congenital malformations in children born after TPT, studies are few, with limited sample size, heterogeneous and often performed without relevant control groups. Population-based cohort study including all Danish children born after TPT and fresh embryo transfer in Denmark from 1995 to 2009. Children born after transfer of frozen-thawed embryos were excluded. Control groups of children conceived by ICSI with ejaculated sperm, IVF and NC were identified by cross-linkage of the Danish IVF Register, Medical Birth Register (MBR) and National Hospital Discharge Register (HDR). The study group consisted of 466 children born after TPT, while the control groups consisted of 8967 (ICSI with ejaculated sperm), 17 592 (IVF) and 63 854 (NC) children. Neonatal outcomes and congenital malformations were analysed for singletons and twins separately. Risk estimates for low birthweight (LBW, <2500 g) and preterm birth (PTB, <37 gestational weeks) were adjusted for maternal age, parity, child gender and year of childbirth. The study group was identified from the Danish national database on children born after TPT. Control groups were obtained from the IVF register and the MBR. All information included in the study was retrieved from the national registers. Considering singletons and twins as one

A comparison of two approaches for representing AAC vocabulary for young children.

PubMed

Worah, Smita; McNaughton, David; Light, Janice; Benedek-Wood, Elizabeth

2015-01-01

Young children with complex communication needs often experience difficulty in using currently available graphic symbol systems as a method of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Information on young children's performance with graphic representations based on this population's conceptualizations of these vocabulary items may assist in the development of more effective AAC systems. This study developed Developmentally Appropriate Symbols (DAS) for 10 early emerging vocabulary concepts using procedures designed to address both conceptual and appeal issues for graphic representations for young children. Using a post-test only, between-subjects comparison group design, 40 typically-developing 2.5-3.5-year-old children were randomly assigned to receive a brief training in either of two different types of graphic symbol sets: (a) DAS or (b) Picture Communication Symbols (PCS), a, commercially available graphic symbol system. Results of a two sample independent t-test provide evidence that children in the DAS condition correctly identified more symbols than children trained with the PCS symbols. There was no evidence of a preference between the symbol sets. The results provide support for careful consideration of children's use and understanding of language in developing AAC systems for young children.

Writing in Young Deaf Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Cheri; Mayer, Connie

2015-01-01

The authors conducted an integrative review of the research literature on the writing development, writing instruction, and writing assessment of young deaf children ages 3 to 8 years (or preschool through third grade) published between 1990 and 2012. A total of 17 studies were identified that met inclusion criteria. The analysis examined research…

Long-term outcome after arterial ischemic stroke in children and young adults.

PubMed

Goeggel Simonetti, Barbara; Cavelti, Ariane; Arnold, Marcel; Bigi, Sandra; Regényi, Mária; Mattle, Heinrich P; Gralla, Jan; Fluss, Joel; Weber, Peter; Hackenberg, Annette; Steinlin, Maja; Fischer, Urs

2015-05-12

To compare long-term outcome of children and young adults with arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) from 2 large registries. Prospective cohort study comparing functional and psychosocial long-term outcome (≥2 years after AIS) in patients who had AIS during childhood (1 month-16 years) or young adulthood (16.1-45 years) between January 2000 and December 2008, who consented to follow-up. Data of children were collected prospectively in the Swiss Neuropediatric Stroke Registry, young adults in the Bernese stroke database. Follow-up information was available in 95/116 children and 154/187 young adults. Median follow-up of survivors was 6.9 years (interquartile range 4.7-9.4) and did not differ between the groups (p = 0.122). Long-term functional outcome was similar (p = 0.896): 53 (56%) children and 84 (55%) young adults had a favorable outcome (modified Rankin Scale 0-1). Mortality in children was 14% (13/95) and in young adults 7% (11/154) (p = 0.121) and recurrence rate did not differ (p = 0.759). Overall psychosocial impairment and quality of life did not differ, except for more behavioral problems among children (13% vs 5%, p = 0.040) and more frequent reports of an impact of AIS on everyday life among adults (27% vs 64%, p < 0.001). In a multivariate regression analysis, low Pediatric NIH Stroke Scale/NIH Stroke Scale score was the most important predictor of favorable outcome (p < 0.001). There were no major differences in long-term outcome after AIS in children and young adults for mortality, disability, quality of life, psychological, or social variables. © 2015 American Academy of Neurology.

Head circumference and body proportions before and during growth hormone treatment in short children who were born small for gestational age.

PubMed

Arends, Nicolette J T; Boonstra, Venje H; Hokken-Koelega, Anita C S

2004-09-01

Although short children who were born small for gestational age (SGA) seem to have normal body proportions, objective data both before and during growth hormone (GH) treatment are very limited. Therefore, we investigated in a large group of short children who were born SGA the effects of GH treatment versus no treatment on head circumference (HC) and body proportions. Furthermore, we studied differences in linear growth and HC between SGA children who were born with a low birth length and birth weight (SGA(L+W)) and SGA children who were born with a low birth length only (SGA(L)). An open-labeled, GH-controlled, multicenter study was conducted for 3 years. Non-GH-deficient short SGA children (n = 87), with a mean age (standard deviation) of 5.9 (1.5) years, were randomized to either a GH group (n = 61), receiving GH in a dose of 33 microg/kg/day, or an untreated control group (n = 26). Height; weight; HC; sitting height; armspan; and hand, tibial, and foot size were measured and expressed as standard deviation score (SDS) adjusting for gender and age. At baseline, all anthropometric measurements, except HC SDS, were significantly lower compared with -2 SDS. During GH treatment, all anthropometric measurements normalized in accordance to the normalization of height SDS. At the start of the study, mean HC SDS was significantly lower in SGA(L+W) children compared with SGA(L) children. It is interesting that most (14 of 16) children with an HC SDS less than -2.00 had been born SGA(L+W). During GH treatment, the 3-year increase in height, HC, and other anthropometric measurements was comparable between SGA(L+W) and SGA(L) children. In both SGA(L+W) and SGA(L) control subjects, no changes in SDSs of height, HC, and other anthropometric measurements were found during the 3-year follow-up period. Untreated short SGA children have normal body proportions with the exception of HC, which is relatively large in many of these children. SGA(L+W) children still had a smaller HC