[P2-153] Necrotizing enterocolitis increases risks to epilepsy in children born very preterm
[Introduction]
Despite improvement in survival rates of very premature infants with advances in neonatal intensive care, there is a high incidence of neurodevelopmental impairment, such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation or epilepsy. However, very few population epilepsy studies that specifically focus on the children who are born very prematurely are available.
[Methodology]
Using a prospective registry data of the very preterm population in Southern Taiwan, this study investigated the prevalence, risk events, seizure characteristics, and neurodevelopmental outcomes of epilepsy in children who are born very prematurely.
[Results]
Totally 585 children were born very prematurely and available for follow up at the age of 5 years (a follow-up rate of 84.7%). Among them, 14 patients had the diagnosis of epilepsy, yielding an epilepsy 5-year incidence of 2.4% (14/585) in the young children born very preterm. The mean age of epilepsy onset was 18.3 ± 13.0 months. Except the known direct risk factors to epilepsy (such as intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)… etc), we found that necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) was a risk factor to epilepsy in these premature infants (OR 8.92; 95% CI, 1.78-44.85; P = 0.033). After adjustment in multivariate logistic regression model, NEC (adjusted OR 10.3; 95% CI, 1.65-65.0; P = 0.011) remained an independent risk factor for epilepsy in addition to neonatal seizure, high-grade IVH, PVL and post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus. However, the epilepsy in NEC patients without other premature brain insults was usually non-intractable.
[Conclusions]
Necrotizing enterocolitis increases risks to epilepsy in children born very preterm.
Despite improvement in survival rates of very premature infants with advances in neonatal intensive care, there is a high incidence of neurodevelopmental impairment, such as cerebral palsy, mental retardation or epilepsy. However, very few population epilepsy studies that specifically focus on the children who are born very prematurely are available.
[Methodology]
Using a prospective registry data of the very preterm population in Southern Taiwan, this study investigated the prevalence, risk events, seizure characteristics, and neurodevelopmental outcomes of epilepsy in children who are born very prematurely.
[Results]
Totally 585 children were born very prematurely and available for follow up at the age of 5 years (a follow-up rate of 84.7%). Among them, 14 patients had the diagnosis of epilepsy, yielding an epilepsy 5-year incidence of 2.4% (14/585) in the young children born very preterm. The mean age of epilepsy onset was 18.3 ± 13.0 months. Except the known direct risk factors to epilepsy (such as intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)… etc), we found that necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) was a risk factor to epilepsy in these premature infants (OR 8.92; 95% CI, 1.78-44.85; P = 0.033). After adjustment in multivariate logistic regression model, NEC (adjusted OR 10.3; 95% CI, 1.65-65.0; P = 0.011) remained an independent risk factor for epilepsy in addition to neonatal seizure, high-grade IVH, PVL and post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus. However, the epilepsy in NEC patients without other premature brain insults was usually non-intractable.
[Conclusions]
Necrotizing enterocolitis increases risks to epilepsy in children born very preterm.