Purpose: The evidence supporting the recommendation to use age adjustment when assessing the growth, motor, and global development of premature infants was explored. Following a comprehensive literature search, 16 articles that compared the use of adjusted and chronological age were reviewed.
Conclusions: The use of full age adjustment based on the degree of prematurity was supported for the assessment of premature infants for a minimum of 12 months adjusted age.
Practice implications: The use of adjusted age enhances the ability to accurately recognize genuine delays as opposed to perceived delays related to a child's gestational age at birth.