Follow-up of visual evoked potential in full-term and pre-term control newborns and in subjects who suffered from perinatal respiratory distress

Abstract

Thirty-five healthy newborns (18 pre-term) and 13 subjects who had suffered from slight (5), middle (3) or severe (5) respiratory syndromes were examined with VEP recording and clinically. Twelve subjects (9 pre-term) affected by perinatal troubles of different kinds (dismetabolic, infectious, etc.) were used for further comparison. A total of 102 records were taken between the 5th and 15th days of life, while for 6 controls, 6 of the second group and 2 of the third one, VEP records and clinical examinations were performed at the 2nd, 6th and 9th months of life. The evoked response was analysed as follows: P 2 wave latency, number of waves, maximal driving frequency with intermittent stimulation and prevalent polarity of the evoked waves. VEPs in normals were well correlated with gestational age, chronological age and body weight for P 2 latency decrement (from about 200 msec at birth down to 110 msec at the 9th month), increase in number of evoked waves, progressively higher maximal frequency of flicker response and clear-cut prevalence of negative polarities in the final response. Neonatal respiratory distress (middle and severe types) induced a severely altered VEP (mainly with delayed peaks and positive polarity) even at the 9th month of extrauterine life.