Brain growth in preterm infants is affected by the degree of growth restriction at birth

Abstract

Objective: Documentation of examination of brain structural development by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) beyond the neonatal period is scarce for both preterm and small for gestational age (SGA) infants.Aim: To investigate structural brain development during infancy in preterm children born SGA by MRI.Methods: A total of 205 preterm infants, 139 appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and 66 SGA, of which 33 had birth weight (BW) < 3rd percentile and 33 had BW 3rd–10th percentile, were examined prospectively by brain MRI at the corrected age of 5 months. The total volume of the brain, ventricles and cerebellum, the area of vermis and corpus callosum, and the height of the pituitary, mesencephalon and pons were estimated on MRI.Results: Brain volume was smaller in the SGA < 3rd percentile infants, independent of other perinatal factors. Chronic lung disease was an independent predictor of low brain volume. Pituitary height was greater in SGA < 3rd percentile than in AGA infants. The corpus callosum area was less in SGA < 3rd percentile than in SGA of 3rd–10th percentile infants.Conclusions: Preterm infants born SGA with BW < 3rd percentile had differences in brain structural measurements at the corrected age of 5 months, compared with preterm AGA infants, which could have implications for their neurocognitive development.