Early Postnatal Automated Spectral EEG Analyses of Premature Infants may Help Predict Neurocognitive Outcome at Adolescence - EAP 2019 Congress and MasterCourse Porto Palacio Hotel

Tone Nordvik ^1,2 Eva Margrethe Schumacher ² Pål Gunnar Larsson ³ Are Hugo Pripp ⁴ Gro Christine Christensen Løhaugen ⁵ Tom Arne Stiris ^1,2

¹Institute of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
²Department of Neonatal Intensive Care, Ullevål, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
³Clinical Neurophysiological Section, Department of Neurosurgery, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
⁴Oslo Centre for Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Oslo University Hospital, Norway
⁵Department of Pediatrics, Sørlandet Hospital HF, Norway

Background: Early postnatal aEEG/EEG of premature infants

Objective: We have previously demonstrated an association between total absolute band power (tABP) during the first three days of life and developmental outcome at 24 months corrected age in premature infants born before 28 weeks gestational age. The aim of this study is to determine whether this association is still present at adolescence.

Methods: Premature infants with a gestational age < 28 weeks were continuously EEG-monitored for the first three days of life. The total absolute band powers of the different frequency bands delta, theta, alpha and beta were analyzed. At 10-12 years of age neurocognitive outcome was assessed using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children 4th edition (WISC), Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). The mean difference in tABP was assessed for individuals with normal versus abnormal neurocognitive scores.

Results: 22 infants were included. The infants were assessed at a mean age of 11.5 years of age. tABP in all four frequency bands were significantly lower in infants with pathological results in the main composite score (full intelligence quotient, adaptive behavior composite score and global executive composite score) of all three tests (p<0.05).

Conclusion: Early postnatal EEG har the potential to assist in predicting cognitive outcome at 10-12 years of age in extremely premature infants < 28 weeks gestation.