Abstract 1496 Poster Session III, Monday, 5/3 (poster 9)

PT infants with CPVL are known to be at risk for cerebral palsy. The purpose of this study was to examine the accuracy of various dimensions of CPVL in predicting the type of cerebral palsy in preterm infants. A retrospective case series design identified 45 consecutive surviving preterm infants <33 weeks gestation with CPVL. Cranial ultrasounds were performed within 72 hours, at 1 week, 2-3 weeks of age and thereafter as needed. CPVL was diagnosed by a single ultrasonographer. Parasagittal and coronal views were used to measure the anterior posterior (AP), cranial caudal (CC) and medial-lateral (ML) greatest extent of CPVL. Volume (VOL) of CPVL was calculated assuming an ellipsoid configuration Vol=π/6×AP×CC×ML. X2 analysis and Fishers exact T test (2 tailed) were used for correlation. Type of CP was determined after 2 years in 40/45 survivors. 39/40 infants had cerebral palsy, hemiplegia or diplegia 17 (44%) and tri or quadriplegia 22 (56%). (Table) The A-P and volume estimates of the extent of CPVL are equally accurate in predicting type of CP in preterm infants. The A-P dimension appears to be an accurate and practical method of measuring the extent of CPVL in preterm infants.

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This work is supported in part by The Children's Guild of Buffalo