Brain injury in the premature infant--current concepts of pathogenesis and prevention

Abstract

Brain injury in the premature infant and, particularly, the prevention of that injury is an enormous problem. With modern neonatal intensive care, approximately 85% of very low birth weight infants survive, and of these survivals, approximately 5-15% exhibit major spastic motor deficit, grouped under the rubric, 'cerebral palsy', and an additional 25-50% exhibit less prominent developmental disabilities, particularly school failure.