Neonatal Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy:Targeting Early Diagnosis and Management of Associated Comorbidities

Cerebral palsy as complication of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy is common problem in Egypt.cerebral palsy is associated with many problems (cognitive disability-epilepsy-visual and hearing problems) that make great economic burden on their family and health care system. In 2010, the prevalence of cerebral palsy in El-Kharga District new valley described 2.04 cases of cerebral palsy every 1000 child.hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy was the second most common cause of cerebral palsy with prematurity the most common. 70.5% of children with cerebral palsy had severe mental retardation and 52% suffer from active epilepsy. An observational study on 224 cerebral palsy case from Tanta University found that 80.8% of patients with cerebral palsy had cognitive disorder, 36% had epilepsy, 25% loss of vision and 16% hearing problems. This health conditions provide a significant financial burden on the health system in Egypt.

There are two problems regard dealing with cases of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy in Egypt, First one is early diagnosis and second is description of its severity. Assessment of the severity of cerebral injury and neurological outcome in infants with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy is important for prognosis and stratifying the clinical management. Neurophysiological tests, including amplitude-integrated electroencephalogram , biochemical markers, and neuroimaging like (Trans cranial ultrasound - Magnetic resonance imaging) have been used to assess prognosis and predict long-term outcome. In our neonatal unit investigators perform routine cranial ultrasound to all cases of hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy.Cranial ultrasound is cheap, available, and easily performed bedside examination. However cranial ultrasound is limited in specificity and sensitivity in diagnosis of Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and prediction of prognosis.

Magnetic resonant imaging might provide the best information on structural brain lesions associated with long-term neurological impairment but is not available for immediate diagnostics on neonatal unit. Amplitude integrated electroencephalography is unfortunately not routinely performed in Egyptian neonatal units. It might improve early detection of Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy and risk stratification accordingly.

Cerebral bleeding and infection are commonly described comorbidities in Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy associated with the poor prognosis. Coagulopathy is common problem in asphyxiated infants. It is associated with asphyxia and therapeutic hypothermia (standardized treatment of hypoxia). Coagulopathy can cause bleeding in serious organs like brain that make the prognosis of Hypoxia bad and control of seizure difficult.