Risk adjusted and population based studies of the outcome for high risk infants in Scotland and Australia. International Neonatal Network, Scottish Neonatal Consultants, Nurses Collaborative Study Group.

Objectives: To compare outcomes of care in selected neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) for very low birthweight (VLBW) or preterm infants in Scotland and Australia (study 1) and perinatal care for all VLBW infants in both countries (study 2).

Design: Study 1: risk adjusted cohort study; study 2: population based cohort study.

Subjects: Study 1: all 2621 infants of < 1500 g birth weight or < 31 weeks' gestation admitted to a volunteer sample of hospitals comprising eight of all 17 Scottish NICUs and six of all 12 tertiary NICUs in New South Wales and Queensland in 1993-1994; study 2: all 5986 infants of 500-1499 g birth weight registered as live born in Scotland and Australia in 1993-1994.