MATERNAL-FETAL HLA SHARING AND RISK OF NEWBORN ENCEPHALOPATHY AND SEIZURES - A PILOT-STUDY

A pilot case-control study was done to collect data on whether suscept ibility to newborn encephalopathy and neonatal seizures is influenced by the degree of maternal-fetal sharing of HLA antigens. Cases include d 13 infants with moderate or severe newborn encephalopathy and seven infants with neonatal seizures but no other signs of encephalopathy. C ontrols were neurologically normal infants matched to cases by date of birth, sex, race, and payment status. Infants and their mothers were typed for HLA-A, -B, -DR, and -DQ antigens. The observed frequency of sharing of maternal antigens was greater than expected (ie, 0.5) for c ases compared to controls at the HLA-B, -DR, and -DQ loci but not for HLA-A. The risk of neurologic problems in the neonatal period was incr eased 6.3 times when there was more than one match at the HLA-DR or -D Q locus. Placental abnormalities were noted at delivery only among cas es, and the mean placental weight in cases was 598 g versus 695 g in c ontrols. Further studies with sample sizes sufficiently large to stati stically test this hypothesis are needed.