Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41749575›Full record

ArticleChildren (Basel, Switzerland)2026

Neurodevelopment at Two Years in Preterm Infants: Corrected Versus Chronological Age.

Barbara Caravale, Valentina Focaroli, Elvira Caramuscio, Cristina Zitarelli, Francesco Pisani, Corinna Gasparini, Paola Ottaviano, Antonella Castronovo, Marzia Paoletti, Daniela Regoli and 3 more

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Article in Children (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

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0 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Barbara CaravaleDepartment of Developmental and Social Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-6761-6075
Valentina FocaroliDepartment of Economic, Psychological, Communication, Educational and Motor Sciences, Università degli Studi Niccolò Cusano, 00166 Rome, Italy.
Elvira CaramuscioDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology and Health Studies, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Cristina ZitarelliDepartment of Developmental and Social Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Francesco PisaniDepartment of Human Neuroscience, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-1083-5576
Corinna GaspariniDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology and Health Studies, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Paola OttavianoDepartment of Human Neuroscience, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Antonella CastronovoDepartment of Neonatology and NICU, S. Eugenio Hospital, 00144 Rome, Italy.
Marzia PaolettiDepartment of Human Neuroscience, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Daniela RegoliDepartment of Maternal and Child Sciences and Urology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Lucia DitoDepartment of Maternal and Child Sciences and Urology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Gianluca TerrinDepartment of Maternal and Child Sciences and Urology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome, 00161 Rome, Italy.ORCID 0000-0003-3541-2876
Rosa FerriDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology and Health Studies, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPreterm birth is a significant risk factor for neurodevelopmental delays, but the appropriate use and timing of age correction for developmental assessment remain debated.

objectiveThis study investigated psychomotor development in preterm children at two years of age, with the aim of clarifying whether age correction remains necessary at this stage, particularly across different gestational age groups.

methodsA total of 161 preterm infants were assessed at a mean chronological age of 25.4 months (mean corrected age: 23.3 months) and compared with two control groups of typically developing children matched for gender and either corrected age (Control-Corr,

resultsUsing corrected age, preterm children showed a selective profile, with deficits in Receptive Language, borderline mean score in Gross Motor, and preserved performance in Cognitive, Expressive Communication, and Fine Motor. When compared with controls of the same age, significant differences emerged in the Cognitive, Language, and Gross Motor, but not Fine Motor, domains. In contrast, scoring by chronological age produced a generalised delay, with preterm children performing significantly worse than chronological-age controls across all domains. Subgroup analyses further showed that extremely preterm children already displayed marked Language vulnerabilities at corrected age, which became more severe with chronological scoring and extended to other domains. Very preterm children also fell into the deficit range in Cognitive, Language, and Gross Motor scales/subscales when chronological age was applied, whereas moderate-to-late preterm children performed comparatively better.

conclusionsDevelopmental assessment using corrected age remains essential at least until 24 months, especially for extremely and very preterm children, to avoid substantial overestimation of developmental difficulties. Chronological scoring, while helpful to highlight persistent vulnerabilities, may inflate delay classification if used too early. Tailoring correction strategies by gestational age and developmental domain could provide a more accurate and clinically meaningful representation of preterm children's developmental trajectories.

Indexed as

age correctionBayley-III scalesneurodevelopmentpreterm infants

Identifiers

PMID41749575
PMCPMC12939051

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.