Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The majority of global health studies use behavioural assessments to measure early child development. Few studies have examined neural indices of cognition using electroencephalography (EEG) in low-income settings. Using data from the Benefits and Risks of Iron Supplementation in Children (BRISC) trial, we examined cognitive development and neural indices of memory and attention in 11 month-old Bangladeshi children and their environmental, socio-demographic, and biological predictors. METHODS: At 8 months of age, 3300 children were randomized to iron syrup, multiple micronutrient supplementation, or placebo for 3 months. The main trial outcomes include child development measured using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID)-III, anthropometry, haemoglobin, morbidity, and iron indices. EEG is being conducted to measure event-related brain potentials (ERPs) in a random subset of 250 children at 11 months of age. ERPs are measured in response to auditory and visual stimuli, using roving oddball and attention orienting tasks. Generalized linear mixed models estimated the predictors of BSID-derived cognitive development and EEG-derived neural indices of memory and attention. Potential predictors include psychosocial stimulation, anthropometry, haemoglobin, socio-economic status, food security, sex, and parental education. Additionally, we examined correlations between the BSID cognitive scores and EEG-derived neural indices of cognition. RESULTS: Preliminary BSID data up to December 2018 indicates that 1749 children have completed measurements at 11 months of age. Psychosocial stimulation was significantly associated with BSID cognitive development scores. ERPs in children at 11 months of age are expected to be completed by May 2019 and relevant results will be presented. CONCLUSIONS: This study is the first to acquire ERP data in children at 11 months of age in rural Bangladesh. Our findings will identify significant predictors of cognitive functioning measured using the BSID (a well-established developmental test) and using EEG (a sensitive neurophysiological approach) in young children in this setting. Results will indicate the agreement between child cognition outcomes using the BSID and EEG. FUNDING SOURCES: NHMRC and The University of Melbourne.