Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) and intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) are the most common neurological
diseases in newborn period. Very often they are caused by perinatal asphyxia and they may lead to permanent disturbances in psychomotor development of infants. The aim of this study was to evaluate the significance of neurological examination and other diagnostic methods in both diagnosis and prognosis of HIE and ICH in high - risk newborn infants. We prospectively examined the group of 115 infants who were followed till the age of three years in order to evaluate their neurological development. Neurological status during newborn period and the first year of life were abnormal in 62% of infants, ultrasound examination of the brain results were abnormal in 60% of infants and electroencephalographic records were abnormal in 23% of infants. Magnetic resonance imaging were done in 25 infants, showing patological changes
predominantly localized in periventricular white mater, basal ganglia and talamus in 10 of them. At the age of three years, we
found that seven infants had moderately severe neurological deficits and nine infants had severe neurological deficits. We
concluded that neurological examination and ultrasound examination of the brain were of limited diagnostic and prognostic
value while electroencephalographic examination was of great significance in infants with neurological disturbances.
Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain was very good method in evaluating pathological changes in the brain of studied
infants, and the spectrum of pathological changes correlated very well with the type of neurological deficits. Prognosis of
neurological development of infants with pathological changes predominantly localized in the region of periventricular
white mater were better than of infants with pathological changes in the region of basal ganglia and talamus who had very
bad prognosis.