Victorian Infant Brain Study (VIBeS)
Synopsis
Cognitive dysfunction and brain development in very preterm children – the VIBeS (Victorian Infant Brain Studies) Longitudinal Cohort Study. The VIBeS cohort is the world’s largest prospective longitudinal neuroimaging and neurodevelopmental study of very preterm and term children. This cohort has undergone brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at term equivalent age and seven years old, and neurodevelopmental assessments at two, five and seven years of age. The current study involves a 13-year follow-up of the VIBeS cohort and is seeking to better understand how cognitive skills develop in preterm children, and how brain injury and brain development underpin cognitive impairments. It aims to determine if cognitive impairments in preterm children worsen or improve with age, providing essential knowledge for diagnosis and management. It is also trying to determine whether neonatal MRI scans can predict cognitive deficits in preterm 13-year-olds, enhancing early detection and intervention for those at high risk. Finally, the study aims to describe brain atypicalities in preterm 13-year-olds and their association with cognitive deficits to aid our understanding of prematurity-related neuroplasticity.
* CA – Corrected Age (for prematurity)
Summary
| Study name | Victorian Infant Brain Study |
| Study abbreviation | VIBeS |
| Current principal investigator/s |
A/Professor Peter Anderson Dr Terrie E Inder (Brigham and Women’s Hospital) Professor Lex Doyle (MCRI, RWH, UniMelb) A/Professor Deanne Thompson (MCRI, RCH) Professor Jeanie Cheong (MCRI, RWH) |
| Current project manager | A/Professor Peter Anderson |
| Cohort representative (study contact) | A/Professor Peter Anderson |
| Phone | (03) 9345 4836 |
| Primary Institution |
Murdoch Childrens Research Institute Monash University Royal Women’s Hospital The Royal Children’s Hospital – RCH |
| Collaborating Institution/s | Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston MA, USA |
| Major funding sources | National Health and Medical Research Council |
| Study website | mcri.edu.au/research/themes/clinical-sciences/victorian-infant-brain-studies-vibes |
| Are data available to others outside study team? | The data are not publicly available and is only available to team members and collaborators. Occasionally we will send data to experts outside the team for specific analyses/interpretation. |
| Study focus | Documenting the trajectory of brain development and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children born very preterm compared with term controls. Investigating brain abnormalities and environmental factors contributing to high proportion of developmental impairment in preterm children. |
| Sampling frame | 227 preterm children (born < 30 weeks’ gestation or with birthweight < 1250 g) recruited from eligible admissions to the Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne (Australia; control sample of 77 term children (born 37 to 42 weeks’ gestation). |
| Year commenced | 2001 |
| Commencement sample | Preterm: 210 from birth Term: 47 from birth plus 43 from age 2 |
| Intergenerational? | No |
| Imaging | Qualitative MRI 3-Dimensional Quantitative Volumetric Processing Diffusion Tensor MRI Functional connectivity MRI (fcMRI) Brain ultrasound |
| Linkage | No |
| Biosamples? | No |
| Ethics approvals or requirements | This project only (Specific consent) |
Waves
| Wave | Year | Age (mean, range) | Eligible sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2001 – 2003 | Term assessed shortly after birth Pre-term assessed at term equivalent age |
227 (pre-term) 46 (term) |
| 2 | 2001 – 2003 | 2 years (corrected age for pre-term) | 220 assessed (pre-term) 76 assessed (45 from birth term group plus 31 term controls recruited at 2 years) |
| 3 | 2006 – 2008 | 5 years (corrected age for pre-term) Pre-term – 60.5 months, Term – 64.0 months |
195 assessed (pre-term) 69 assessed (term) |
| 4 | 2008 – 2010 | 7 years (corrected age for pre-term) Pre-term – 7.5 years, Term – 7.6 years |
198 assessed (pre-term) 70 assessed (term) |
| 5 | 2014 – 2016 | 13 years (corrected age for pre-term) | Data not yet available |