Grant: Project Grant

One in 12 babies in Canada is born preterm, a month or more before the mother's due date. Preterm birth occurs during a critical period of brain and other organ development, making preterm children vulnerable to complications like infections, malnutrition, or too low/too high oxygen levels. This can lead to challenges in their development, behaviour and learning. The health and social effects of having a preterm baby impact the entire family unit; their parents often experience stress, financial difficulties, social isolation and mental health problems. However, little is known about how preterm children's siblings are affected. Having a preterm child changes the daily routine of families. The high caregiving needs of the child cause parents to have less time and energy to focus on their other children. Siblings of preterm children feel lonely and might miss quality family time and healthy parental relationships. They may also spend less time with peers if they are helping with the care of a preterm child or other household tasks. Chronic stress, parental mental issues and social risk factors common among families of preterm children also can create a challenging environment for the growing sibling. Such early life experiences may increase the risk of siblings having mental and physical health problems and developmental challenges as they grow up. Understanding the extent to which a sibling's health is affected by having a child born preterm in the family is essential to ensure adequate health, social, and financial support are in place to meet the entire family's needs. We propose a comprehensive study that would be the first to examine the long-term health and developmental outcomes of siblings of children born preterm in three Canadian provinces. We will focus on siblings' risk for developing behavioural, socio-emotional, mental and physical health problems and developmental outcomes in childhood and adolescence (up to age 18).