Neurobehavior of preterm infants at 36 weeks postconception as a function of morphine analgesia.

This study evaluated early neurobehavioral outcomes in ventilated preterm infants randomized to receive morphine analgesia or placebo in the Neurological Outcomes and Pre-emptive Analgesia in Neonates (NEOPAIN) trial. Eight hundred and ninety-eight infants between 23 and 32 weeks of gestation were randomized to receive preemptive morphine analgesia (morphine) or placebo. Infants also received additional analgesia (AA) with open-label morphine.

Changes in neurotrophin levels in umbilical cord blood from infants with different gestational ages and clinical conditions.

Apoptotic neuronal loss may be responsible for altered brain development associated with prematurity and perinatal insults. Neurotrophins play crucial roles in protecting neurons from entering or progressing along an apoptotic pathway. The present study examined levels of neurotrophins in human umbilical cord blood from infants at different gestational ages and clinical conditions.