Outcome among surviving very low birthweight infants: a meta-analysis

Article Abstract:

Because of significant technical advances in medicine, the death rate among low birthweight (LBW, weight under 5.5 pounds) and very low birthweight (VLBW, weight under 3.3 pounds) babies has decreased greatly. However, this has led to conflicts in terms of economic cost and quality of life, which are most visible for surviving VLBW newborns. Quality of life issues include the prevalence of cerebral palsy and other disabilities among the infants. To better determine the outcome of surviving VLBW infants, 161 published research studies about these infants were subjected to meta-analysis, a statistical technique which combines the results of many studies done on a single topic. The different techniques used to perform the various studies are discussed. Reports on only 26,000 infants born during the last 30 years were available, although 40,000 are born each year in the US. Follow-up was usually available for less than three years, although disabilities frequently are not diagnosed before school age. The analysis found a great deal of variation in reported outcomes among different reports. The average incidence of cerebral palsy was 7.7 percent, which changed little with time. The relative risk for cerebral palsy among surviving VLBW infants was 38 times that of all infants. The disability rate among VLBW survivors was estimated to be about 25 percent, but disability levels were higher in studies which had longer follow-up times. US studies appeared to report higher levels of disability. The study recommends that more research should be devoted to determining the outcome of VLBW survivors. Research and report designs should be standardized, geographically-based reporting systems for these infants should be instituted, and incentives should be provided to improve the long-term follow-up of affected infants. Currently, the ethics of providing heroic care for VLBW infants (saving lives at all costs) are being debated, although in the absence of firm data it appears that a poor prognosis is common for infants with VLBW. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Health aspects, Prognosis, Infants

---

Is low birth weight a risk factor for asthma during adolescence?

Article Abstract:

Progress in the intensive care of newborns has improved the survival of infants with low birth weight (LBW). There is limited information about the respiratory outcome of LBW infants. One study showed a relation between LBW, impaired airway function, and cough at seven years of age. The effect of LBW on the incidence of asthma in childhood and adolescence was assessed by reviewing the medical records of 20,312 males born between January 1967 and December 1971 in Jerusalem. Additional information concerning birth weight and demographic characteristics were obtained from the Jerusalem Perinatal Study. The effects of social, ethnic, and environmental factors were also considered. The odds ratio (possibility) for developing asthma by the age of 17 years was calculated in children grouped by birth weight. The groups consisted of 500 gram (1.1 pounds) birth weight categories, and ranged from less than 2,000 grams (4.4 pounds) to 4,500 grams (9.9 pounds). The odds ratio was adjusted for various demographic characteristics including ethnic origin, social class, paternal education, maternal age, and birth order. The results showed that infants weighing less than 2,500 grams (5.5 pounds) at birth had an increased risk of developing asthma by age 17 years. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Diseases, Youth, Asthma in children, Childhood asthma

---

Deafness in children of very low birth weight

Article Abstract:

A 1964 study observed that deafness was more common in preterm than in full-term babies. The study ruled out various causes, including jaundice, asphyxia (lack of oxygen) during delivery, or the administration of streptomycin - causes which, at the time, were thought to contribute to this condition. However, the study did establish that deafness was related to a gestational age of less than 33 weeks and to attacks of neonatal asphyxia. The study concluded that a shortage of oxygen was a contributing cause to deafness in preterm infants. Today, techniques are available to attribute deafness to either antenatal or postnatal factors. Incubator noise has been implicated as a potentially dangerous source of deafness, as have ear-damaging drugs. The conclusion of the 1964 study, implicating lack of oxygen in hearing loss, appears to be valid and infants who are at high risk should be screened so that hearing aids can be obtained as soon as possible. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Research, Abnormalities, Infants (Premature), Premature infants, Deafness, Hearing impaired children

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: The effect of cesarean delivery on birth outcome in very low birth weight infants. Health and hospital readmissions of very-low-birth-weight and normal-birth-weight children
• Abstracts: Fetal monitoring and predictions by clinicians: observations during a randomized clinical trial in very low birth weight infants
• Abstracts: Maternal mortality in North Carolina: a forty-year experience. Factors predictive of failed operative vaginal delivery
• Abstracts: Antiplatelet or anticoagulant therapy after coronary artery bypass surgery: a meta-analysis of clinical trials
• Abstracts: Disproportionate septal hypertrophy associated with erythroblastosis fetalis. Correction of atrioventricular septal defect: results influenced by Down syndrome?

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.