Overview

• MRI scans of 372 infants show sensory-discriminative circuits reach adultlike connectivity at 34–36 weeks post-conception, affective-motivational pathways at 36–38 weeks and cognitive-evaluative networks remain immature beyond 42 weeks.
• Incomplete cognitive-evaluative development means full-term newborns lack the brain infrastructure for conscious pain appraisal.
• Building on 2023 findings of no habituation to repeated pain in preterm babies, researchers link this to underdeveloped pain networks.
• Funded by the Medical Research Council and conducted by teams from UCL, UCLH and King’s College London, the study calls for tailored timing and dosing of neonatal analgesia.
• Published in the journal Pain, the results highlight preterm infants’ vulnerability to procedural pain and the need to reshape clinical protocols to protect early brain development.