Visual Perception in Preterm Infants

We aim to increase our knowledge of the impact of preterm birth on the maturation of the visual and auditory systems and on the development of multisensory perception Specifically, we aim to evaluate the preterm infants' capabilities of detection and discrimination of different visual and auditory stimuli according to gestational age, post menstrual age and the duration of the postnatal life. A secondary aim is to compare this competencies in preterm and full term control art term equivalent age. The final aim is to optimize the hospital environment in order to make it correspond to the expectations and sensory abilities of very preterm infants. Our hypothesis is that preterm birth exposes the infants to numerous atypical stimuli which could accelerate the processes of sensory maturation