Early intervention promotes intellectual development of premature infants: a preliminary report

Objective To evaluate the effect of early intervention on the intellectual development of the premature infants. Methods Premature infants at gestational age of 28 -36.9 weeks were randomly divided into two groups: intervention and conventional care groups. Normal newborn infants during the same period were included in the control group (routine care). Up to March 1996, 156 cases were over the age 1.5-2 years (corrected age), 52 in the intervention group, 51 in the conventional care group and 53 in the normal control group. Parents were taught to carry out the 0-2 year intervention program, which included motor, cognitive, speech development and social behavior. Every three months, height, weight and head circumference were measured. At the age of one and a half and two years, all infants in the three groups received infant development tests of Child Development Center of China (CDCC) scale. The examiner did not know which infant had received intervention. Results There was no significant difference in biological factors among the two premature groups and in cultural and social factors among the three groups. Intelligence tests at the age of one and a half and two years showed that the average mental development: index (MDI) in the intervention group was 13.8 and 14.6 higher than those in the conventional care group and the differences were significant. The psychomotor development index (PDI) was 5.2 and 4.7 higher but the differences were not significant. The MDI and PDI in the intervention group and normal control were quite close, but at two years, the MD( and PDI in the intervention group were 5.7 and 7.3 higher than those in the normal control and the differences were significant (P < 0.05). Compared with the normal control, the MDI in conventional care group at one and a half and two years of age were 11.5 and 8.9 lower. The difference was very significant. There were four cases of mental retardation, whose mental development index (MDI) was less then 70 in the conventional care group, but none in the intervention group. Conclusions Early intervention can promote intellectual development of the premature infants and may be beneficial to the prevention of mental retardation. Early and intensive intervention can produce better results. Bringing parent's initiative into full play through deepening their understanding of the importance of early intervention is the key to success.