Effect of intraventricular hemorrhage on cerebellar growth in preterm neonates

The aim of this study is to evaluate cerebellar growth of preterm infants with intraventricular hemorrhage. Vermis height (VH) and transverse cerebellar diameter (TCD) were measured by cranial ultrasound in 18 preterm infants (26-30 weeks) with intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) at first 3 days of life and at term equivalent age (TEA). IVH was diagnosed by ultrasonography and scaled in accordance with the definitions by Papile et al. Measurements were compared with 18 preterm (26-30 weeks) infants without IVH. Both VH and TCD of preterm infants with IVH were significantly lower than those of preterm ones without IVH at TEA (p < 0.001). No significant difference was found for head circumference (p = 0.158) and weight (p = 0.092). In subgroup analysis, preterm infants with grades 3-4 IVH had significantly lower TCD (p = 0.008) and head circumference (p = 0.033) than the ones with grades 1-2 IVH. However, VH (p = 0.102) and weight (p = 0.480) did not show any difference between these subgroups. IVH may have a significant impact on cerebellar growth on preterm infants at TEA, specially those with a severe IVH. TCD is affected more than VH.