[Newborn infants with a birth weight of 1000 g and less. A regional study of 124 cases].

A retrospective and regional survey was performed in 1986 and 1987 in the neonatal centers of western France (9 districts of Pays de Loire and Bretagne with 156,134 births). The epidemiology of 124 neonates with a birth weight of 1,000 g or less was analysed and the follow-up was studied at the age of two. The incidence was 0.8 per thousand births. The mortality was 44.3%. There were no differences between surviving and dead infants concerning obstetrical circumstances, presentation and mode of delivery, multiple or single pregnancies and birth place. Seventy per cent were incubated in the delivery room. Forty-five per cent had respiratory distress syndrome (RDS): 60% of them died (vs 30% without RDS; P less than 0.001) 41% had ultrasound intracranial anomalies (vs 8.5% without RDS; P less than 0.003). There was significantly less death when the duration of rupture of membranes was greater than 12 hours (28% vs 51.7% for a duration less than 12 hours; P less than 0.03). Cerebral palsy was present in 19.3% of the survivors followed until the age of 2 years. The disabled infants differed significantly from normal infants in term of RDS and ultrasound intracranial anomalies. From this study, the incidence of infants with very low birth weight appears low in western France, possibly related to the fact that infants died before birth or before being sent to neonate units; survival and sequelae rate is comparable with other studies.