Neonatal-Perinatal Fellow University of New Mexico Children's Hospital Rio Rancho, New Mexico, United States
Background: Despite continued advances in quality medical care for premature infants, neurodevelopmental delay remains a frequent morbidity of prematurity (even in the absence of major complications or abnormalities on neuroimaging). Early diagnosis and intervention of developmental delays leads to improved outcomes. However, accurate and early identification of these infants remains a challenge. Maternal voice exposure has been shown to have positive effects for preterm infants, though less widely studied as it relates to neurodevelopment. Quantitative EEG has shown potential as a prognostic tool for identifying delays in preterm infants, yet is not routinely used as such. Objective: This novel study investigates the effects of recorded maternal voice on quantitative EEG (qEEG) patterns in preterm neonates. We hypothesize that infants exposed to their mother’s recorded voice will show qEEG patterns distinct from controls – showing an increase in higher-frequency alpha & beta spectral powers, previously shown to correlate with long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes. If hypothesized pattern differences match previously published results, recorded maternal voice may be supported as a useful addition to NICU developmental care strategies, and the use of qEEG as a screening/prognostic tool in the neonatal population could be further explored. Design/Methods: This study is a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial, approved by local IRB. Planned enrollment of 20 infants to be completed by Dec 2023. Infants born at 24 0/7 - 32 3/7 wks, without congenital/neurologic anomalies, are eligible to participate. Enrolled infants have a baseline EEG performed just prior to 33 wks corrected gestational age (cga) and then are played a recording of their mother’s voice or a blank control recording for 1 hour/day for a 2-week intervention period (from 33-35 wks cga). Infants then have a 2nd EEG performed at 35-36 wks cga. Data from both EEG studies will be processed by spectral frequency analysis for analysis and comparison, and group-wise comparisons made by mixed ANOVA testing.
