From April '88 till March '94, 108 inborn infants of GA 22-25 weeks were admitted to our NICU. Fifty-six infants (52%) with mean BW 718±111g and GA 23.9±0.7 weeks survived. Twenty-one of the survivors (27%) required 02 supplementation at 36 weeks and 5 (9%) at home. ROP ≥ stage III was diagnosed in 18 children (32%), IVH Grade I and II in 4 (7%), Grade IV in 1 and PVL in 1. As of now, 39 children (70%) have completed a 24-month follow-up and partial information is available for 14 additional children. All ages were corrected for prematurity. There were no differences across gestational ages in mean z-score for weight (W), head circumference (HC) and length (L) at any corrected postnatal age. Between 3 and 24 months, the percentage of children with a growth parameter below the 5th%tile decreased from 30 to 13% for W(p=0.27), from 68 to 14% for L(p=0.00), but increased from 11 to 38% for HC(p=0.02).
In terms of general health, 50% of children required at least one rehospitalization, mostly for respiratory illnesses and minor surgical procedures. Furthermore, brochospasm affected 50% and repeated otitis media 45% of them. Five children (9%) are legally blind and 12 (21%) have some form of visual impairment. Three children (5%) need hearing aids. Speech delay was diagnosed in 30% of cases. Occupational therapy and physio were offered to 50% of children during the first year of life for abnormalities on neurologic exam. Overall 9 children (16%) were classified at 24 months as having severe morbidity, i.e. blindness, deafness, severe developmental delay.
