title: Coagulopathy screening and early plasma treatment for the prevention of intraventricular hemorrhage in preterm infants.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Despite the improvement in the assistance and treatment of preterm infants, intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) remains a frequent complication in these patients. Our aim was to demonstrate the hypothesis that a coagulopathy screening and the early treatment with fresh-frozen plasma (FFP) of proven coagulopathy may contribute to decrease the occurrence of IVH in infants with gestational age of less than 29 weeks.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study compared two cohorts of infants who received FFP (10 mL/kg) after the evidence of pathologic coagulation tests performed within 2 hours after birth (screening group, n = 127) or after the development of bleedings and evidence of pathologic coagulation tests (no-screening group, n = 91).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The screening strategy decreased the relative risk (RR) of developing IVH (RR = 0.65; 95% confidence interval, 0.44-0.98) compared to no-screening strategy, but the effect was limited to infants born at 23 to 26 weeks of gestation in whom screening strategy lowered IVH occurrence (34.5% vs. 61.1%, p = 0.008).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A coagulopathy screening strategy decreases the risk of developing IVH in preterm infants but this effect is limited to infants born at 23 to 26 weeks of gestation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Critical Care, Section of Neonatology, Careggi University Hospital of Florence, Florence, Italy. cdani@unifi.it
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Dani
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Poggi
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ceciarini
authors.forename: Giovanna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bertini
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pratesi
authors.forename: Firmino F
authors.initials: FF
authors.lastname: Rubaltelli
mesh_terms: D001778:Blood Coagulation Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002552:Cerebral Ventricles; D015331:Cohort Studies; D017707:Erythrocyte Transfusion / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D015997:Neonatal Screening; D010949:Plasma; D017713:Platelet Transfusion / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors