PURPOSE: Extremely low gestation age newborns (ELGANs) are at high risk for developmental brain abnormalities. This study is to determine deep and superficial gray matter volumetric abnormalities of ELGAN children and full term children at 9 to 11 years of age. METHODS: High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans were obtained from 160 ELGAN children (70 males and 90 females) and 30 full term children (15 males and 15 females) using a dual-echo turbo spin-echo (DE-TSE) pulse sequence at 3.0T (or 1.5T at only one site). The DICOM MR images were processed with quantitative MRI algorithms programmed in Mathcad. The brain deep gray matter (dGM) was manually segmented; dGM and cortical gray matter (cGM) volumes were quantified using semi-automated clustering segmentation algorithms. RESULTS: ELGAN children had smaller deep gray matter volume (41.86 ± 7.42 ml) than full term children (49.24 ± 10.91 ml). Deep gray matter volumes of ELGAN children showed similar distribution range (SD = 7.42 ml) with the full term children (SD = 10.91 ml). About 83% of the ELGAN children had smaller deep gray matter volumes compared to the average volume of full term children at the same ages. Male children had smaller deep gray matter volumes in ELGAN (42.77 ± 7.09 ml) than in full term (51.74 ± 9.76 ml), but female children had similar deep gray matter volumes in ELGAN (41.14 ± 7.62 ml) with full term (44.27 ± 7.56 ml). Additionally, smaller deep gray matter volumes were observed more often in males (90%) than in females (65%). Cortical gray matter volumes of ELGAN children distributed from 345.60 to 1177.50ml. Moreover, female ELGAN children had smaller cortical gray matter volumes (828.14 ± 147.61 ml) than males (883.13 ± 151.34 ml). Correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between cerebral deep gray matter volumes and total gray matter volumes (total: r = 0.57, p<0.0001; male: r = 0.542, p < 0.0001; female: r = 0.587, p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Male ELGAN children had smaller brain deep gray matter volumes than full term children at ages of 9 to 11 years, but not females. Cortical gray matter volumes of female ELGAN were smaller than male ELGAN. Smaller deep gray matter volumes were associated with smaller total gray matter volumes in ELGAN children.

Forskning om smärta hos barn började ta fart i mitten på 1980-talet. Innan dess fanns uppfattningar av att barn inte upplevde smärta. Resultatet av denna forskning, som fortfarande pågår, har långsamt implementerats i praktiken. Först på 1990-talet omsattes dessa resultat i praktiken, av att barn ändå kunde känna smärta. Vårdpersonal fick en ökad medvetenhet om smärta och smärtskattning hos barn. Olika smärtskattningsinstrument för att bedöma smärta hos prematura barn har sedan dess utarbetats, men de tillämpas främst i studiesyfte och används bristfälligt i vården. Det finns flera hinder för att smärtskatta, till exempel brist på kunskap och barnsjuksköterskors attityd kring smärta.   Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka barnsjuksköterskors uppfattningar av vilka förutsättningar som bör finnas för att smärtskatta prematura barn. Som metod användes fenomenografisk forskningsansats där sex barnsjuksköterskor blev intervjuade med öppna frågor. Resultatet av studien visar att barnsjuksköterskorna anser att kunskap om smärta och smärtbedömning är en av de viktigaste förutsättningarna. Ett lättförståeligt och lättillgängligt smärtskattningsinstrument, vårdpersonalens engagemang och familjefokuserad vård är andra förutsättningar som bör finnas. För att förbättra smärtskattningen måste först och främst kunskapen öka, genom både yrkesutbildning och fortbildning. / In the middle of the eighties the research of pain in children increased. Before that there were conceptions that children did not feel pain. Results of this research, which is still in progress, has slowly been implicated in practice. In the nineties these results were put into practice, that children feel pain. The awareness of pain and pain assessment in children increased in nursing staff. Pain assessment tools, for judging pain in preterm children, has since then been developed. These are mostly used in studies and not enough at bedside. There are many hinder in pain assessment, for example lack of knowledge and nurses attitudes to pain.   The aim of the study was to describe pediatric nurses' conceptions of what conditions that is necessary around judging pain in preterm children. A phenomenografic method with an open-ended questionnaire was used on six pediatric nurses'. The results of the study showed that pediatric nurses' has conceptions that knowledge about pain and pain assessment is the most important condition. A pain assessment tool that is easy to understand and accessible, nursing staff that is responsive and family centered care is other conditions that is necessary. To improve pain assessment nurses' knowledge needs to increase through different education.

<p>Forskning om smärta hos barn började ta fart i mitten på 1980-talet. Innan dess fanns uppfattningar av att barn inte upplevde smärta. Resultatet av denna forskning, som fortfarande pågår, har långsamt implementerats i praktiken. Först på 1990-talet omsattes dessa resultat i praktiken, av att barn ändå kunde känna smärta. Vårdpersonal fick en ökad medvetenhet om smärta och smärtskattning hos barn. Olika smärtskattningsinstrument för att bedöma smärta hos prematura barn har sedan dess utarbetats, men de tillämpas främst i studiesyfte och används bristfälligt i vården. Det finns flera hinder för att smärtskatta, till exempel brist på kunskap och barnsjuksköterskors attityd kring smärta.</p><p> </p><p>Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka barnsjuksköterskors uppfattningar av vilka förutsättningar som bör finnas för att smärtskatta prematura barn. Som metod användes fenomenografisk forskningsansats där sex barnsjuksköterskor blev intervjuade med öppna frågor. Resultatet av studien visar att barnsjuksköterskorna anser att kunskap om smärta och smärtbedömning är en av de viktigaste förutsättningarna. Ett lättförståeligt och lättillgängligt smärtskattningsinstrument, vårdpersonalens engagemang och familjefokuserad vård är andra förutsättningar som bör finnas. För att förbättra smärtskattningen måste först och främst kunskapen öka, genom både yrkesutbildning och fortbildning.</p> / <p> </p><p>In the middle of the eighties the research of pain in children increased. Before that there were conceptions that children did not feel pain. Results of this research, which is still in progress, has slowly been implicated in practice. In the nineties these results were put into practice, that children feel pain. The awareness of pain and pain assessment in children increased in nursing staff. Pain assessment tools, for judging pain in preterm children, has since then been developed. These are mostly used in studies and not enough at bedside. There are many hinder in pain assessment, for example lack of knowledge and nurses attitudes to pain.</p><p> </p><p>The aim of the study was to describe pediatric nurses' conceptions of what conditions that is necessary around judging pain in preterm children. A phenomenografic method with an open-ended questionnaire was used on six pediatric nurses'. The results of the study showed that pediatric nurses' has conceptions that knowledge about pain and pain assessment is the most important condition. A pain assessment tool that is easy to understand and accessible, nursing staff that is responsive and family centered care is other conditions that is necessary. To improve pain assessment nurses' knowledge needs to increase through different education.</p>

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Background: Optical coherence tomography (OCT), multifocal electroretinography (mfERG) and full-field electroretinography (ffERG) give important information about retinal structure and function. Purpose: To collect normative data of macular Cirrus Spectral domain (SD)-OCT assessments and of mfERG measurements of healthy children (papers I and II). To assess the macular thickness with Cirrus SD-OCT and the retinal function with ffERG in 6.5-year-old children born extremely preterm and in children born at term (papers III and IV). Methods: Study participants aged 5-15 years and living in Uppsala County were randomly chosen from the Swedish Birth Register (papers I and II). In papers III and IV, the study participants consisted of children born extremely preterm and children born at term – all were aged 6.5 years. In paper III, the children were living in Stockholm and Uppsala health care regions and, in paper IV, in Uppsala health care region only. Macular thickness was assessed with Cirrus SD-OCT and macular function with mfERG, using the Espion Multifocal system and DTL-electrodes. The retinal function was assessed with ffERG and DTL-electrodes, using the Espion Ganzfield system. Results: Altogether, 58 children participated in paper I and 49 children in paper II. In paper I, the repeatability and reproducibility of the OCT assessments were good. In paper II, the results of the mfERG measurements were in accordance with retinal cone density and there were no significant differences between the right and left eyes. In paper III, 134 preterm children and 145 children born at term constituted the study population. The central macular thickness was significantly thicker in the preterm group than in the control group. Within the preterm group, gestational age (GA), former retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and male gender were all important risk factors for an increased macular thickness. In paper IV, 52 preterm children and 45 control children constituted the study population. Significantly lower amplitudes and prolonged implicit times of the combined rod and cone responses, as well as of the isolated cone responses, were found in the preterm group when compared with the control group. In paper IV, there was no association between GA, ROP or male gender and the ffERG assessments. Conclusion: Normative data of Cirrus SD-OCT and mfERG assessments were reported. The results of the assessments were reliable. Children aged 6.5 years, born extremely preterm, had a significantly thicker central macula and both rod and cone function were significantly reduced in comparison to children born at term. ROP had an influence on retinal structure but not retinal function in the present cohorts. Our results suggest that retinal development is abnormal in children born extremely preterm. Long-term follow-up studies are necessary in order to evaluate the functional ophthalmological outcome in this vulnerable population of children growing up today.

Objectives: Within the last decade there has been growing emphasis on early diagnosis of autism. It has been proved, that early diagnosis of autism followed by an appropriate intensive intervention lead to the reduction of autistic psychopathology and significant improvement of the child's prognosis. Efforts to identify children at risk of autism as early as possible resulted in the development of many screening tools and some new diagnostic methods that could be used even before the age of two years. Despite many attempts of the researchers worldwide, we still lack general agreement on the optimal screening method. Abnormal sensory symptoms have a specific position among the early signs of autism. Difficulties with sensory processing have been associated with autism since it was first defined as a diagnosis; nevertheless evaluation of sensory symptoms is under-represented in autism screening tools. There has been a long lasting debate whether sensory symptoms are a component of core autistic deficits or a co-morbid phenomenon, however, new version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) has already included sensory dysfunction among the diagnostic criteria of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Methods: Over 90% of children with autism have sensory abnormalities and present with...

BACKGROUND: The most numerous group from children due to perinatal burden is a group of prematurely born children and whose number continues to increase constantly. The children have higher probability of health problems and they are at risk of a complex threat to their successful development. Premature childbirth is a complicated difficult life situation for parents. Strongly reduced mental well- being is often developed at these parents and sometimes even some clinical symptoms (especially depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder). Such parenting (as well as other factors) greatly diminishes the overall interaction and communication with the child (especially their sensitivity and responsiveness) which can also be reflected in the parental style. AIM: The aim of the empirical part was to describe the occurrence of individual educational styles in healthy preterm infants 8-12 years old. METHODS: A Questionnaire of parental styles for children between the ages of 8 and 12 was used for this purpose (Čáp, Čechová & Boschek, 2000). RESULTS: A sample of 35 children showed that the most perceived parental style was a style characterized by a negative emotional relationship combined with a strong direction. CONCLUSION: The importance of the results can be seen in the practical application for...