Longitudinal Study Reveals Differences in Visual Motion Perception between Full-Term and Preterm Children

This study used high-density electroencephalogram (EEG) to investigate how full-term and preterm infants and children perceive visual motion as they grow older. The participants were tested at 4-5 months, 11-12 months, and 6 years old, and their brain activity was recorded while they watched different types of visual motion. The results showed that full-term children became more sensitive to structured optic flow as they grew older, detecting it more efficiently than random visual motion. Their brain activity also exhibited increased synchronization in specific frequency ranges, indicating development in visual motion processing. In contrast, preterm children showed a different developmental pattern. They only showed increased sensitivity to structured optic flow at 6 years old, but still struggled to detect it more efficiently than random visual motion. Frequency analyses revealed less synchronized brain activity in specific frequency ranges for preterm children at 11-12 months and 6 years old compared to full-term children. Motor function assessments showed that most preterm children performed well in perceptual-motor tasks related to the visual dorsal stream at 6 years old. The study concluded that the observed developmental progression in visual motion processing for full-term children is likely due to increased self-produced locomotor experience and neural maturation. In contrast, preterm children exhibited delayed development and possible vulnerabilities in the dorsal visual stream caused by premature birth. It is unclear whether these impairments will persist throughout life or if further development will occur. Further studies will shed light on the long-term implications of these differences in visual motion perception between full-term and preterm children.

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