The present study aims to assess psychological development in terms of behavioral, intellectual and emotional indicators of preterm and very low birthweight children at school age in comparison with full-term children. The sample in this study consisted of forty children aged from 8 to 10 years. They were divided into 2 groups: Preterm (PT) consisting of 20 children born <37 gestational weeks with a <1.500 g birthweight and Full term (FT) also consisting of 20 subjects who were born with a >2.500g birthweight. Raven's Special Scale, Draw-a-Person and Child Behavior Scale were used in the psychological assessment. PT group presented more behavioral problems and lower intellectual level when compared to the FT group. Enuresis, fear, tics, impatience and lack of focus on activities were significantly more frequent in the PT group than in the FT group. In the PT group the lower the intellectual level of the children the more behavior problems they presented.
Preterm; very low birth weight; development; intelligence; behavior
