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State of the Art Cranial Ultrasound Imaging in Neonates
Published on: February 2, 2015
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Internal Cerebral Vein Doppler Velocities Reflect Maturational Changes and Hemorrhage Risk in Preterm Infants
Fleur A Camfferman1, Paul Govaert2, Floris Groenendaal3
1From the Department of Neonatology (F.A.C., F.C.), Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel, Brussels, Belgium.
AJNR. American Journal of Neuroradiology
|December 12, 2025
Summary
Internal cerebral vein (ICV) velocity in preterm infants is a promising early marker for intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) risk. Higher ICV velocities, adjusted for weight, were observed in infants who developed IVH, indicating potential for neuroprotection strategies.
Area of Science:
- Neonatal Neurology
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- Preterm infants face risks of brain injury due to immature cerebral autoregulation.
- Assessing cerebral perfusion in neonates is challenging; advanced imaging is often impractical, and surrogate markers lack reliability.
- Internal cerebral vein (ICV) velocity may offer a non-invasive method to evaluate cerebral hemodynamics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess internal cerebral vein (ICV) velocity and waveform characteristics in preterm infants (born before 32 weeks).
- To explore the relationship between ICV velocities, clinical parameters, and term-equivalent MRI findings.
- To investigate ICV velocity as a potential early marker for intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) risk.
Main Methods:
- A prospective cohort study of 47 preterm infants (postmenstrual age 28.9 ± 2.2 weeks) admitted to the NICU.
- Internal cerebral vein (ICV) velocities were measured using Doppler ultrasound at multiple time points.
- Mixed model analysis was employed to compare ICV velocities with clinical data and term-equivalent MRI results.
Main Results:
- ICV velocity/weight correlated significantly with postmenstrual age (PMA), postnatal age (PA), and PA squared.
- Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) during admission was significantly associated with ICV velocity/weight (p=0.003).
- Higher ICV velocities, corrected for body weight, were observed in infants who developed IVH, suggesting a potential link to hemorrhage risk.
Conclusions:
- Internal cerebral vein (ICV) velocity in preterm infants reflects cerebral maturation and may serve as an early indicator of hemorrhage risk.
- Infants developing intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) exhibited significantly higher weight-corrected venous velocities.
- Further research with larger cohorts is necessary to validate the predictive value of ICV velocity monitoring for neuroprotection strategies.
