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Updated: Jun 12, 2026

The Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy Model of Perinatal Ischemia
Published on: November 19, 2008
Prophylactic phenobarbital and whole-body cooling for neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy
Donald F Meyn1, Jayne Ness, Namasivayam Ambalavanan
1Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA. don.meyn@infamedics.com
Abstract:
In infants with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, cooling reduces death/neurodevelopmental impairment, whereas prophylactic anticonvulsants may not. This retrospective analysis shows no reduction in neurodevelopmental impairment (23% in prophylactic phenobarbital group vs 45% in controls, P = .3) but fewer clinical seizures in cooled infants who received prophylactic phenobarbital (15% vs 82% P < .0001).
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