Outcome of infants with inflicted traumatic brain injury (shaken baby syndrome) in Estonia.

Unlabelled: This is a population-based prospective study to identify the long-term outcome of children with inflicted traumatic brain injury (ITBI). Twenty-two survivors were identified and followed up. Only 2 of 22 had no developmental problems at follow-up, 20 of 22 children were having different developmental problems, among them 3 of 22 were severely handicapped. Psychological tests passed 17 of 22, 5 did not pass due to severe handicap (3 children) or were too young (2 patients). Epilepsy was found in 7 of 22, being intractable in 3 cases. Serious motor problems were identified in 5 of 22. Ophthalmologic problems were found in 4 of 22. The most important predictor of adverse outcome was young age at the time of the insult.

Conclusion: the outcome of these potentially healthy children is poor. The key question is prevention. Health care professionals should be more concerned about these problems.