The Effects of Intraventricular Hemorrhage on Functional Communication Skills in Preterm Toddlers

Abstract

A group of 24-month-old preterm toddlers (n = 27) were subdivided into three groups according to their early specific medical complications [i.e., respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), without intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), IVH (Grades I and II), and IVH (Grades III and IV]) and were matched to a group of full-term toddlers (n = 10) on socioeconomic status and mental and receptive language age. We evaluated (1) the effects of IVH on functional use of language (e.g., speech acts), and (2) the relationship of mothers' verbal attempts to stimulate children's interest in topics and toys with the communication behaviors used by the children. The preterm groups used verbalizations and gestures less frequently to express a range of functions, but were comparable to the full-term children in their use of communicative acts that served to continue interactions. Although child behaviors did not differ in relation to specific medical complications, these differences were apparent in the mothers' behavior patterns and in the relationships between mother and child behavior. Mothers' verbal maintaining behavior was strongly associated with children's use of language for the full-term and two lower risk preterm groups, but not the higher risk IVH (Grades III and IV) group. The mothers of the IVH (Grades III and IV) group showed high responsiveness to lower level child behaviors, a pattern that was not apparent in the other preterm groups for lower risk children who showed comparable delays in their functional communication development.