Prediction of developmental outcome using a perinatal risk inventory

An effective perinatal developmental screening that predicts developmental outcome of high-risk neonates is currently not available. One hundred twenty-five high-risk infants were evaluated prior to discharge from the neonatal intensive care unit using a newly developed perinatal risk inventory, family status index, and abbreviated neurobehavioral assessment scale. All infants had been evaluated using the Bayley Mental and Motor Scales of the Stanford-Binet. They were also evaluated by a pediatrician, audiologist, and ophthalmologist. Fifteen infants had been evaluated using 9-month Bayley Scales of Infant Development, 74 had been evaluated using the Bayley at 9 and 18 months, and 36 children had been assessed using the Stanford-Binet at 36 months. The total score of the perinatal risk inventory demonstrated a significant correlation with the infants' last score on the Bayley and Stanford-Binet (r = .55, P less than .001). The abbreviated neurobehavioral assessment scale correlated with the infants' IQ and developmental quotient score (r = .3, P less than .001); the family status index did not correlate well with the developmental outcome. Using a score of 10 on the perinatal risk inventory provided a sensitivity of 0.76, specificity of 0.79, positive predictive value of 0.475, and negative predictive value of 0.929. Twelve of the 13 infants with cerebral palsy were identified as being potentially developmentally abnormal prior to discharge. It appears that it is possible to predict the developmental outcome of high-risk neonates using a perinatal risk inventory.