Neurodevelopment of Preterm Infants Born to Preeclamptic Mothers

Background: Preeclampsia during pregnancy is associated with increased risk for various neonatal morbidities.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the association between prematurity due to maternal preeclampsia and developmental outcomes.

Methods: This retrospective matched case- control study included 39 preterm infants (

Results: The groups were comparable in terms of gestational age (GA) (30.2 weeks vs 29.8, p=0.6) and exposure to antenatal glucocorticosteroids and magnesium sulfate. Early complications were similar. The two groups differed significantly in birth weight (BW) so that cases had significantly lower birth weight (1094±317 vs 1326±477 grams, p=0.0001). 19/39 (48.7%) cases were small for gestational age (SGA), compared with only 4/39 (10.3%) controls (p=0.0001). 16/39 of cases were born less than 1000 grams, compared with only 5/39 controls (41% vs 12.8%, p=0.005).

Compared with controls, an overall trend for better neurodevelopmental performance on GMDS was found for cases, especially for early (6 month) non-motor performance. All severely disabled infants (GMDS<55) at 24 month assessment were among controls.

Conclusions: Although premature infants born to preeclamptic mothers are significantly smaller and more SGA, their developmental milestones at 12 and 24 months are at least comparable to those born at a similar GA without preeclampsia. Further studies are needed to determine whether the trend for better performance implies a developmental advantage or is due to chance.