Executive function training in very preterm children: a randomized controlled trial

• Published in: European child & adolescent psychiatry Vol. 30; no. 5; pp. 785 - 797
• Main Authors: van Houdt, Carolien A., van Wassenaer-Leemhuis, Aleid G., Oosterlaan, Jaap, Königs, Marsh, Koopman-Esseboom, Corine, Laarman, A. R. Céleste, van Kaam, Anton H., Aarnoudse-Moens, Cornelieke S. H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.05.2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Arithmetic; Attention; Birth weight; Child; Child & adolescent psychiatry; Child and Adolescent Psychiatry; Child Behavior Checklist; Children; Clinical trials; Computerization; Double-Blind Method; Executive function; Executive Function - physiology; Female; Hospitals; Humans; Infant, Extremely Premature - physiology; Low birth weight; Male; Mathematics; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Contribution; Placebos; Psychiatry; Task performance; Teachers; Intervention; Premature; Reading; Behavior; Attention; Arithmetic
• ISSN: 1018-8827; 1435-165X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00787-020-01561-0

Objective of the current study was to assess whether game-formatted executive function (EF) training, is effective in improving attention, EF and academic performance in very preterm and/or extremely low birthweight children aged 8–12 years. A multi-center, double-blind, placebo- and waitlist controlled randomized trial (NTR5365) in two academic hospitals in The Netherlands was performed. Eighty-five very preterm children with parent-rated attention problems on the Child Behavior Checklist were randomized to one of three treatment conditions: EF training, placebo training or waitlist condition. EF or placebo training was completed at home (6 weeks, 25 sessions of 30–45 min each). At baseline, 2 weeks after training or being on the waitlist, and five months after first follow-up visit, children underwent assessments of primary outcomes (parent and teacher ratings of attention) and secondary outcomes (parent and teacher ratings of daily-life EF, computerized EF tasks and academic performance). Linear mixed model analyses were performed for all outcome measures. There were no significant differences in improvement over time on parent- and teacher ratings of attention, parent- and teacher ratings of daily-life EF, computerized EF tasks, and academic performance (arithmetic and reading) between the EF training, placebo training and waitlist condition. In conclusion, game-formatted EF training does not improve attention, EF or academic performance in very preterm children with parent-rated attention problems.