Clinical outcomes of mild isolated cerebral ventriculomegaly in the presence of other neurodevelopmental risk factors

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate neuropsychological test data in school-aged children whose fetal sonograms revealed mild isolated cerebral ventriculomegaly without asymmetry of the lateral ventricles.

Methods: Nine of 52 children 6 years and older with sonographic evidence of mild isolated cerebral ventriculomegaly without asymmetry of the lateral ventricles were able to be recruited for follow-up school-aged neuropsychological testing. The children received a half-day battery of neuropsychological tests, including the Wechsler Abbreviated Scales of Intelligence; Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual Motor Integration, Fifth Edition; Wide Range Achievement Test, Fourth Edition; and Integrated Visual and Auditory Continuous Performance Test. Parents completed the Conners 3 Parent Short Form and the Personality Inventory for Children, Second Edition.

Results: In this small group, other risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders were often present, including preterm birth, perinatal hypoxia, and a family history of psychiatric disease or substance abuse. Within this sample, the proportion of children with a pattern of test results showing poorer nonverbal intelligence than verbal intelligence scores and poorer math than reading performance, as well as meeting criteria for a diagnosis of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, was higher than the basal rates of these problems among children in general.

Conclusions: Particularly given the complexity of various factors affecting neurodevelopment, follow-up neuropsychological evaluation is warranted in children with sonographic evidence of mild isolated cerebral ventriculomegaly without asymmetry of the lateral ventricle (eg, in the context of poor school performance).

Keywords: IQ; behavior; cerebral ventricles; neuropsychology; sonography.