Premature Infants: The Behavioral Phenotype of the Preterm Survivor

Abstract

Approximately one of ten children was born preterm based on current global estimates. While the outcomes of the preterm survivor are promising, with a small fraction experiencing significant neurodevelopmental disability, many children born preterm will experience subtle, discreet, and additive challenges that can contribute to school challenges. This chapter describes the pattern of neurodevelopmental outcomes for the child born preterm, now increasingly referred to as the behavioral phenotype of prematurity. Awareness of this pattern is critical for the practitioner following these children.