MedicalResearch.com Interview with: [caption id="attachment_67904" align="alignleft" width="150"] Dr. Nivins[/caption] Samson Nivins PhD Post-doc | Neonatology Karolinska Institutet Developmental Neuroscientist Liggins Institute   [caption id="attachment_67905" align="alignleft" width="150"] Dr. Ådén[/caption] Ulrika Ådén PhD Professor of Neonatology Department of Women's and Children's Health Karolinska     MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Children born preterm are at higher risk of cognitive impairment during childhood and later in life. However, an important unresolved question is whether these impairments primarily reflect genetic susceptibility or are driven by the biological consequences of being born too early. Cognitive development is known to have a strong heritable component (~70 %), and previous studies have attempted to disentangle genetic and environmental contributions, for example through sibling comparison designs. Although informative, such approaches have inherent limitations. In this study, we aimed to investigate long-term cognitive outcomes across a range of gestational age groups including very preterm, moderately preterm, late preterm, and early term, compared to children born full term. Importantly, we accounted for genetic influences as well as a range of potential confounding factors, including prenatal risks and child-specific factors. This approach provides a more nuanced understanding of the extent to which cognitive outcomes associated with preterm birth reflect biological versus inherited risk.