Intracranial haemorrhage in the term neonate diagnosed by computerised tomography--perinatal history, symptoms and outcome

An intracranial haemorrhage was diagnosed by computerised tomography in 35 term neonates. Subarachnoid haemorrhage was found in 23, intracerebral haemorrhage in 9 and subdural haematoma in 3 patients. Perinatal risk factors indicating trauma or hypoxic events were evaluated in more than 50%. Clinical symptoms were independent of the site of the bleeding. An additional hypoxic-ischaemic brain injury seemed to be the cause of the observed clinical symptoms in many cases. The outcome was significantly better in patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage than in intracerebral haemorrhage or subdural haematoma. Respiratory arrest, increased muscle tone and seizures were frequently associated with an unfavourable outcome.