Cognitive outcomes in late childhood and adolescence of neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) is the most common cause of neonatal encephalopathy with a global incidence of approximately 1 to 8 per 1,000 live births. Neonatal encephalopathy can cause neurodevelopmental and cognitive impairments in survivors of hypoxic-ischemic insults with and without functional motor deficits. Normal neurodevelopmental outcomes in early childhood do not preclude cognitive and behavioral difficulties in late childhood and adolescence because cognitive functions are not yet fully developed at this early age. Therapeutic hypothermia has been shown to significantly reduced death and severe disabilities in term newborns with HIE. However, children treated with hypothermia therapy remain at risk for cognitive impairments and follow-up is necessary throughout late childhood and adolescence. Novel adjunctive neuroprotective therapies combined with therapeutic hypothermia may enhance the survival and neurodevelopmental outcomes of infants with HIE. The extent and severity of brain injury on magnetic resonance imaging might predict neurodevelopmental outcomes and lead to targeted interven tions in children with a history of neonatal encephalopathy. We provide a summary of the long-term cognitive outcomes in late childhood and adolescence in children with a history of HIE and the association between pattern of brain injury and neurodevelopmental outcomes

Acute Encephalopathy With Biphasic Seizures and Late Reduced Diffusion Associated With Adenoviral Pneumonia

Acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion is a subtype of acute encephalopathy described in a cohort of Japanese children. Few cases have been reported in countries other than Japan. It is characterized clinically by biphasic seizures and late reduced subcortical diffusion on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We report the case of a 3-year-old Korean girl with acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion who presented with status epilepticus associated with fever and pneumonia. Human adenovirus was detected from a respiratory specimen using multiplex real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. After 5 days, she developed a second cluster of seizures followed by altered consciousness, aphasia, stereotypic movement, and developmental regression. Her brain MRI showed symmetrical and extensive restricted diffusion in the subcortical white matter, which finally resulted in global brain atrophy, consistent with acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion. Here, we report a case of acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion associated with preceding adenoviral pneumonia

Long-term cognitive outcomes in term newborns with watershed injury caused by neonatal encephalopathy

BackgroundWe previously reported that increasing severity of watershed (WS) injury in neonatal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is associated with worse language outcomes in early childhood. In the present study, we investigated the relationship between neonatal injury patterns and cognitive profile in adolescents with neonatal encephalopathy.MethodsTerm neonates with encephalopathy were prospectively enrolled and imaged using brain MRI from 1999 to 2008. Neonatal brain injury was scored according to the degree of injury in WS and basal ganglia/thalamus (BG/T) areas. The children underwent a neurocognitive assessment and follow-up brain MRI at the age of 10-16 years. The relationship between neonatal brain injury patterns and adolescent cognitive outcomes was assessed.ResultsIn a cohort of 16 children, neonatal MRI showed WS injury in 7, BG/T injury in 2, and normal imaging in 7. Children with WS injury had lower estimated overall cognitive ability than those with normal imaging. Increasing WS injury score was associated with decreasing estimated overall cognitive ability, Perceptual Reasoning Index, and digit span score.ConclusionsChildren with the WS injury are at an increased risk of having problems in long-term intellectual ability. These cognitive outcomes may underlie early language difficulties seen in children with neonatal WS injury.ImpactAdolescents with a history of neonatal encephalopathy and watershed pattern of injury on neonatal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) had lower overall cognitive ability, perceptual reasoning skills, and auditory working memory than those with normal neonatal imaging. Children with post-neonatal epilepsy and cerebral palsy had the worst cognitive outcomes. Watershed pattern of injury confers high long-term differences in intellectual ability