The diving reflex in healthy infants in the first year of life.

A cohort study was conducted with a random sample of 33 healthy infants evaluated at birth and at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, and 12 months to determine the frequency of respiratory rate changes in response to air blown over the face (diving reflex) in the first year of life, and to standardize the description of diving reflex occurrence. All 33 infants remained neurologically normal throughout follow-up. Diving reflex was observed in 95.

[Neurologic vigor of term newborns according to the type of delivery and obstetric maneuvers].

Purpose: to evaluate the effect of delivery type and usual obstetric procedures on the neurologic condition of a sample of consecutive term and healthy neonates, in the first 48 hours of life, using the Neurologic Adaptative Capacity Score (NACS) system.

Methods: cohort prospective study with 313 neonates, from a neonatology unit: Unidade de Neonatologia e Alojamento Conjunto. The variables analyzed were obstetric variables; clinical outcome: low neurologic vigor phase, evaluated by NACS, at 4, 24 and 48 hours of life.

Evolution of anterior fontanel size in normal infants in the first year of life.

To analyze cranial growth and size of anterior fontanel during the first year of life, we undertook a cohort study with a sample of 33 infants assessed at birth and reexamined at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, and 12 months. Examination included assessment of head circumference, anterior fontanel size, anteroposterior distance, biauricular distance, and cephalic index. All infants were neurologically normal.

[Syndrome of cerebral non-dominant hemisphere].

In this review the meaning of cerebral hemispheric function is discussed with special emphasis in non-dominant cerebral hemisphere and particularly in the lesion of commissural, association, projection of white matter fibers. Clinical characteristics depend on etiology, localization, extension and particularly the period of brain development. The following are common findings in these patients: left hemiplegia, abnormal prosody and non verbal communication, anomalies visiospatial perception, organization, and social interaction.

Neurological maturation in the first semester of life in small for gestation age infants.

Our aim was to evaluate the acquisition of neuropsychomotor development marks in small for gestational age infants during the first six months of life. A non-controlled cross-section study with thirty full-term newborn small for gestational age infants was performed in a University Hospital in the Southern region of Brazil. These infants were followed up during six months and compared with literature data regarding adequate to gestational age newborn babies.

S100B protein related neonatal hypoxia.

Biochemical markers have played an increasingly relevant role in the assessment of neonatal asphyxia. The S100B protein is particularly important in research conducted in this field. The purpose of this study was to underline the importance of the S100B protein in the assessment of term newborn infants with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, as well as to relate it to other substances also involved in the ischemic process.

[Primitive reflex in premature healthy newborns during the first year].

Unlabelled: A non-controlled, prognostic cohort study was performed with the aim of establishing markers of neurological development and defining a clinical and epidemiological profile of preterm newborns at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of gestation-corrected age in terms of primitive reflexes evolution.

Results: At 3 months old of corrected age, all primitive reflexes were present. At 6 months old, all children showed plantar grasp and 2.

Babkin reflex and other motor responses to appendicular compression stimulus of the newborn.

This cross-sectional study evaluated 106 normal newborns with the aim of determining the prevalence of mouth opening, neck rotation, and limb flexion or extension responses triggered by pressure stimuli applied to the hand, forearm, arm, foot, leg, or thigh. Mouth opening, neck rotation, and lower limb flexion responses were found in the three segments of the lower limb, with mouth opening obtained in 100% of newborns, neck rotation in 88.7%, and flexion of lower limbs in 67.

Auditory hypersensitivity in children and teenagers with autistic spectrum disorder.

Objective: To verify if the clinical behavior of auditory hypersensitivity, reported in interviews with parents/caregivers and therapists/teachers of 46 children and teenagers suffering from autistic spectrum disorder, correspond to audiological findings.

Method: The clinical diagnosis for auditory hypersensitivity was investigated by means of an interview. Subsequently, a test of the acoustic stapedial reflex was conducted, and responses to intense acoustic stimulus in open field were observed.

Ischemic stroke in children: a study of the associated alterations.

Arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) in children is a relatively rare disease, not yet clearly understood and with a multifactored etiology. It can cause a severe impact on the child and be the first manifestation of a systemic disease. Delayed diagnosis is still common and research on the subject in our field practically does not exist.

[Oral language acquisition: relation and risk for written language].

The present study relates the acquisition of oral language to the development of writing in 236 children of a private school in the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil. The objective of this research was to identify non-linguistic factors involved in phonological acquisition and to describe the relation of phonological acquisition with alterations of writing. At the age of 6 years, kindergarten students were divided into 2 groups, based on the test of Phonological Evaluation of Children.

[Autism and pervasive developmental disorders].

Objective: To review the current knowledge on neurobiological aspects of autism and pervasive developmental disorders, as well as to provide pediatricians with up to date information on diagnosis and treatment of autism.

Sources Of Data: Review of MEDLINE and Internet.

Summary Of The Findings: Autism is the 3rd developmental disorder, with an incidence of 40 to 130/100,000 individuals.

Clinical and electroencephalographic follow-up after a first unprovoked seizure.

We studied the role of clinical and electroencephalographic factors in the follow-up of children and adolescents after a first unprovoked seizure, and their correlation with recurrence and risk for epilepsy. We conducted a 24-month follow-up of 109 patients aged 1 month to 16 years who had a first unprovoked seizure. We analyzed the characteristics of the first seizure, perinatal history, family history of seizures, electroencephalographic patterns and their influence on seizure recurrence, and calculated risk for subsequent epilepsy.

[Vigabatrin in the treatment of epilepsy in patients with West syndrome and tuberous sclerosis].

Purpose: To report the efficacy of vigabatrin in seizures control, as well as the electroencephalographic abnormalities in children with tuberous sclerosis and West syndrome.

Method: Retrospective study, with clinical, neuroimaging, and electroencephalographic data.

Results: Seven patients were followed, and the median time of follow-up was 10 years.

Influence of intracranial hemorrhage and neonatal seizures on the neurological and psychomotor development of premature infants at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Unlabelled: This study compared the results of neurodevelopmental examination at 6 months' corrected age of premature infants with neonatal seizures and/or intracranial hemorrhage and normal premature infants. There was a statistically significant correlation (p=0.000007) between intracranial hemorrhage and seizures in the group of 68 premature infants seen in the neurodevelopmental outpatient service at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Brazil.

[Cerebral palsy, new therapeutic possibilities].

OBJECTIVE: To provide pediatrician with updated information about diagnoses and treatment of cerebral palsy. This articles aims at supplying pediatricians with tools that will help them diagnose and treat cerebral palsy. SOURCES: Non-systematic review of literature combined with personal experience at the Neurology Unit of Pediatrics Service of Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre - Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.

[Hyperechogenicity of thalamic vessels in preterm newborn infants].

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate possible pathologies associated with hyperechogenicity of thalamic vessels (HETV), which are found on brain ultrasounds (BUS), as well as to observe the frequency of their occurrence.

Methods: The sample was composed of 206 preterm newborn infants at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA) from July 1998 to May 1999. All of them were submitted to BUS in the first week of life.

Neurological examination in the healthy term newborn.

We carried out a cross-sectional study with a sample of 106 normal full-term newborns examined within 24 to 72 hours of birth. The following findings were evaluated: head and chest measurements, muscle strength, tone, tendon reflexes, superficial reflexes, primitive reflexes, and cranial nerves. All 106 newborns were considered neurologically normal.

Parachute and lateral propping reactions in preterm children.

A non-controlled, prognostic cohort study was performed with the aim of establishing markers of neurological development and defining a clinical and epidemiological profile of preterm newborns at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of gestation-corrected age in terms of parachute and lateral propping reactions. Newborns with gestational age of up to 36 weeks and 6 days, weighing 2,000 g or less at birth, were included in the study At 6 months of age, parachute and lateral propping reactions were present in 8.1% of the patients.

Cerebrovascular disease in pediatric patients.

Although rare in childhood, stroke may have a serious impact when it happens in this stage of life. Also, it may be the first sign of a systemic disease. We report 12 cases of patients with stroke treated in the Neuropediatrics Unit of Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA) from March 1997 to March 2000.