UC San Diego Receives $3 Million Grant to Track Cognitive Development of Preterm Children

The Eunice Kennedy Shriver Institute of Child Health and Human Development (part of the National Institutes of Health) is giving the University of California, San Diego, a five-year, $3 million grant to fund a longitudinal study tracking the development of cognitive, academic and brain measures in preterm children transitioning from preschool to grade school. Previous research has determined that even preterm babies who are considered “normal” are at high risk for lower academic achievement, due to math difficulties and deficits in attention and executive function. “[The study] is not meant to frighten parents of children born preterm, but to alert them of potential cognitive or behavior problems that – with early intervention – can be mitigated,” one researcher said. Click here to read the full story.