REGULATION OF AROUSAL & ATTENTION IN CONDITIONS OF ENVIRONMENT & BIOLOGICAL RISKS

该项目的研究涉及年龄非常小的婴儿和幼儿， 发育迟缓和精神病理学的高风险， 她们在怀孕期间和产后暴露于危险因素。 具体而言，我们将重点关注 妊娠期药物暴露的神经生物学损伤和在 高风险环境。孕妇使用可卡因（通常在 与酒精和其他药物的组合）在 越来越多的胎儿被暴露现在很多报道 记录可卡因暴露的神经生理学表现， 立即新生儿期，但很少有关于 这些孩子的神经心理学发展后，第一个， 两个月，没有关于注意力调节的研究， 学龄前儿童的发展方面。神经- 可卡因在动物和成人中的药理作用，以及 描述以下患者表现出的注意力障碍的临床报告 学龄前儿童提出可卡因产前，表明婴儿， 在子宫内接触可卡因可能会有持续和各种风险， 中枢神经系统功能障碍该项目的研究基于 从出生到60个月的严格的纵向调查 在子宫内接触可卡因的孩子该研究侧重于长期 对注意力调节和唤醒状态、认知 发展和适应行为。婴幼儿产前 与母亲是可卡因的孩子相比， 两组在3、6、12、18和24个月时观察到， 从30个月到60个月的6个月。在这些时候，重复的措施是做 四个变量（唤醒调节能力，调节 注意状态、一般发展能力和适应能力 行为）。此外，由于产妇的贡献， 行为对儿童注意力的调节， 在每个时间点检查孩子。这项研究具有重要意义 应用于理解注意力和唤醒的损伤 调节影响认知表现、适应行为和社会 学龄前儿童的互动。本项目的重点 神经生物学脆弱性和环境相互作用领域 发展障碍与其他项目密切相关， 计划项目。该项目也为一个 国家高度关注的领域，神经生物学和环境 影响接触毒品儿童发育的因素。

The studies in this Project concern infants and young children at very high risk for developmental retardation and psychopathology because of their exposure to risk factors during gestation and postnatally. Specifically, we will focus on the interaction between the neurobiological insult of gestational drug exposure and growing up in high risk environments. The use of cocaine by pregnant women (often in combination with alcohol and other drugs) has increased rapidly in the last five years and more fetuses are being exposed. Many reports now document the neurophysiological manifestations of cocaine exposure in the immediate neonatal period, but there is little information about the neuropsychological development of these children after the first one to two months and no studies of attention regulation and rigorously defined aspects of development in preschool aged children. The neuro- pharmacological effects of cocaine in animals and adults, as well as clinical reports describing attentional impairments exhibited by preschool children proposed to cocaine prenatally, suggest that infants exposed to cocaine in utero may be at continuing and various risk for central nervous system dysfunction. The studies in this Project are based on a rigorous, longitudinal investigation from birth to 60 months of children exposed to cocaine in utero. The study focuses on the long-term effects on the regulation of attention and states of arousal, cognitive development, and adaptive behavior. Infants and young children prenatally exposed to cocaine are compared to children whose mothers are cocaine- free and both groups are seen at 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months and every 6 months from 30 to 60 months. At these times, repeated measures are done of four variables (arousal regulatory capacities, regulation of attentional states, general developmental competency and adaptive behavior). Additionally, because of the contributions of maternal behavior to children's regulation of attention, mental interactions with the child and examined at each time point. This study has important applications for understanding how impairments in attention and arousal regulation impact cognitive performance, adaptive behavior, and social interaction in the preschool aged child. The emphasis of this Project Area on neurobiological vulnerability and environmental interaction in developmental disorders is closely related to the other Projects in this Program Project. This Project also makes an important contribution to an area of high national concern, the neurobiological and environmental factors involved in the development of children exposed to drugs.