Behavioral responsiveness in preterm infants with intraventricular hemorrhage

Preterm infants with varying degrees of intraventricular hemorrhage (none, n = 21; grade I to II, n = 22; grade II to IV, n = 24) and a group of full-term infants (n = 21) were compared with regard to behavioral responsiveness and parental reports of the infant's temperament. Behavioral responsiveness was assessed during the presentation of 15 visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli at 3 months of age (corrected aged for preterm infants). Summary scores for positive and negative responsiveness, as well as sociability, soothability, and overall activity levels, were derived from behavioral observations by coders who were unaware of the infant's characteristics. The Bates Infant Characteristic Questionnaire was completed by the main care giver and scored on four summary variables: fussy-difficult, unadaptable, dull, and unpredictable. Preterm infants, regardless of the presence or severity of intraventricular hemorrhage, showed less positive responses and less overall activity in response to stimulation. Infants with grade I to II intraventricular hemorrhage were less sociable and more difficult to soothe than full-term control infants. Individual differences in positive, negative, sociability, and soothability were related to the questionnaire scores of fussy-difficult and unadaptability. Both prematurity and degree of intraventricular hemorrhage affect behavioral responsiveness and these individual differences are related to parental reports of the infant's temperament.