Neurodevelopmental outcome at 12 months of age related to cerebral ultrasound appearances of high risk preterm infants.

A prospective neurological and developmental assessment at 12 months of age corrected for prematurity was performed on 54 surviving preterm infants of 34 weeks' gestation or less. The babies were allocated into three groups according to their ultrasound (US) appearances: Group I (n = 29), normal scan; Group II (n = 10), isolated periventricular-intraventricular haemorrhage (PVH); Group III (n = 15), association of PVH, periventricular leukomalacia (PVL) and ventricular dilatation. The developmental outcome evaluated with the Griffiths' development quotient (DQ) was good and similar in Groups I and II, while it was worse and variable in Group III. There was also a higher incidence of neurological abnormalities in Group III, as 47% of children only were found to be normal compared to 86% and 80% in Groups I and II, respectively. A major handicap was diagnosed in 5 children of Group III. Infants with small lesions of PVH or PVL or with ventricular dilatation developed as well as children with normal US scan, whereas more diffuse or extensive US changes of PVL had a poorer prognosis. The outcome of a cerebral injury seems to depend on the type, the size and localisation of the lesion, and to some extent, on the neuroplasticity of the developing brain.