Abstract
The relationship of head size at birth and at 40 weeks conceptional age to subsequent neurobehavioral development in 40 very low birthweight infants (VLBW < 1500 Gm) was examined. At birth 85% of the infants had a head circumference below the 10th percentile for gestational age (SHA) whereas by 40 weeks CA the proportion of infants whose heads remained SHA fell to 60%. At 7 months of age corrected for term gestation 83% of the VLBW infants had achieved normal head circumference. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development were administered to all the infants at 7 months corrected age. The Mental Developmental Index (MDI) was less than 90 in 56% of the babies SHA at birth and in 60% of the AHA infants. By contrast, MDI less than 90 was found in 71% of the infants SHA at 40 weeks as compared to 23% of the infants AHA at 40 weeks (P<0.05). Regardless of subsequent attainment of normal head circumference, failure of head size to reach normal limits by 40 weeks conceptional age in VLBW infants carries with it a relatively poor prognosis for normal development at 7 months.
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Damn, C., Vaughan, H., Kurtzberg, D. et al. 35 NEONATAL HEAD SIZE AND SUBSEQUENT NEUROBE-HAVIORAL STATUS IN VLBW INFANTS. Pediatr Res 12 (Suppl 4), 369 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00040
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00040