Assessment of gestational age of preterm newborn based on neurological examination, obstetric dating criteria and pediatrics criteria
Egewarth, C.; Pires, F.D.A.; Guardiola, A.
Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria 60(3-B): 755-759
2002
ISSN/ISBN: 0004-282X PMID: 12364944 Document Number: 550755
Perinatal mortality and the incidence of neurological sequelae in preterm infants have diminished owing to advances in perinatology. The accurate assessment of gestational age is a very important component of the medical practice and for the newborn's management. Herein we provide a study to evaluate the neurological examination in comparison to the obstetrics dating criteria and pediatrics scales (Dubowitz and Capurro) to determine the gestational age as well as to compare the gestational age obtained with the different methods. We studied 35 preterm newborns leaving out those ones with any pathologies. The different scales to determine the gestational age were administered to each infant, beyond the neurological examination. We conclude that André-Thomas method is an appropriate clinical tool for reliable determining for gestational age in preterm newborns.