Infants with birth weight under 1500 g: physical, neurological, and developmental outcome.
One hundred and seventy-eight infants with birth weights less than or equal to 1500 g born in 1973-1975 were followed for a period of 1-3 years, and the physical, neurological, and developmental outcome evaluated. Although there was a high incidence of maternal problems, these did not correlate with outcome. Asphyxia at birth followed by neonatal complications leading to ventilatory assistance was significantly correlated with poor outcome. Over 50% of infants less than 100 g birth weight required assisted ventilation, but the outcome in small ventilated infants was comparable to that of ventilated infants of 1001-1500 g birth weight. Infants with neurological abnormality showed a high incidence of associated abnormalities in growth, vision, hearing, and development. Spastic quadriplegia emerged as the most common neurological diagnosis. Despite the many perinatal problems, 82% of the group were normal neurologically and 66% developmentally. The overall outcome was generally favorable in these infants even for those requiring ventilation.
D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006128:Growth; D006311:Hearing Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009420:Nervous System / Q000254:growth & development*; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis