The CIRCA DIEM KIDS Follow-Up Study

Following the early childhood journey of children born preterm who participated in the CIRCA DIEM Study

The CIRCA DIEM KIDS Study is following children born preterm who were participants in The CIRCA DIEM Study as newborns. Children either received routine care during their hospitalisation after birth or were managed in an hospital environment that gave them an artificial daytime and nighttime, using eye masks and earplugs to block out light and reduce noise overnight, and a safe level of light exposure during the day. The aim of this intervention was to help the babies develop a strong day-night rhythm to see if this helped them to improve their health and wellbeing in the first few years of life

In this follow-up study, the children will be seen again for several different assessments between the ages of 5-8 years, to check how they are growing, learning and developing during early childhood. We want to understand if giving babies a day-night cycle during their time in neonatal intensive care has lasting benefits for their health, development and wellbeing.

The knowledge gained from this study will help improve the care of future generations of babies born too soon and provide new insights into how optimising care in early life can shape lifelong health.

Why are we doing The CIRCA DIEM KIDS Study?

Children born very preterm often face unique challenges as they grow, including difficulties in learning, behaviour, vision, hearing, sleep and respiratory health.

In a recent survey, families who participated in the original CIRCA DIEM Study told us that understanding these longer-term outcomes was extremely important to them.

The CIRCA DIEM KIDS Study will help us answer questions about the lasting impacts of early development of day-night rhythms in preterm children such as:

• Does it improve learning, behaviour and development later in childhood?
• Does it influence sleep patterns and wellbeing?
• Could it improve vision, hearing, or lung health?
• Are there broader benefits for families, school readiness and healthcare systems?

The answers to these questions may help shape future care for babies born preterm around the world.

Check out the video below to see how our CIRCA DIEM families who participate in the CIRCA DIEM KIDS Study will help us to improve care for future generations of babies born too soon.

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(ANZCTR) Trial Registry Number: ACTRN12626000707369

Funding: WA Child Research Fund (WACRF)

This study has approval from the Child and Adolescent Health Service Human Research Ethics Committee based in Western Australia, who can be contacted via CAHS.Ethics@health.wa.gov.au or by telephoning (08) 6456 0561.