Is moderate to late prematurity an independent risk factor for neonatal hypoglycaemia and subsequent neurodevelopmental impairment?

Neonatal hypoglycaemia is the most frequent metabolic disorder in newborns and is associated with poorer neurodevelopment. Consensuses regarding definition of neonatal hypoglycaemia and management are debated. Infant factors increasing risk of hypoglycaemia include premature birth. This is the first systematic review considering whether moderate to late prematurity is an independent risk factor for hypoglycaemia <2.6mmol/L (<47mg/dL) and associated impact on neurodevelopment.

Dr Darren M Cameron
ST6 (S1) Neonatal GRID Registrar
darren.cameron4@nhs.scot

Dr Lesley Jackson
Consultant Neonatologist

Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow

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Keywords

neonatal hypoglycaemia; preterm; moderate and late prematurity; neonatal neurology; neurodevelopment

Key points

Infant factors increasing the risk of hypoglycaemia include premature birth.
Moderate and late prematurity are defined as 32⁺⁰to 33⁺⁶ and 34⁺⁰ to 36⁺⁶ weeks’ gestation.
Neonatal hypoglycaemia is the most frequent metabolic disorder in infancy.

Also published in Infant:

VOLUME 15/ISSUE 6, NOVEMBER 2019

Improving educational outcomes for children born preterm: a new approach

Children born preterm are at higher risk of special educational needs than their term-born peers, and have poorer attainment at school. As intervention efforts to date have had little success in improving long-term outcomes, a new approach to intervention is needed. The Premature Infants’ Skills in Mathematics (PRISM) team has developed a novel e-learning resource to improve educational support for children born preterm. The resource is freely available for use by parents, healthcare and education professionals worldwide and has been shown to improve teachers’ knowledge of preterm birth and their confidence in supporting children in the classroom. Here we describe the development and evaluation of the e-learning resource.