Infants of women with severe early pre-eclampsia: the effect of absent end-diastolic umbilical artery Doppler flow velocities on neurodevelopmental outcome

Umbilical artery Doppler flow velocity waveform studies were performed over a period of 4 y on 242 women with severe pre-eclampsia before 34 wk gestat ion. Sixty-eight (28%) had absent end-diastolic umbilical artery Doppler fl ow velocities. One hundred and ninety-three infants survived to hospital di scharge and were followed at 6-monthly intervals until 48 mo of age. The me an corrected developmental quotient was 94 +/- 8 at 24 mo of age and 87 +/- 9 at 48 mo. Ninety-two percent of the infants had a developmental quotient of >80 at 24 mo and 72% at 48 mo of age. This decline is thought to be due to the impact of social circumstances. There were no differences between t he developmental quotients of the infants with normal and those with absent end-diastolic umbilical artery Doppler flow velocities at either 24 or 48 mo of age. At 24 mo of age, infants with absent end-diastolic umbilical art ery Doppler flow velocities scored lower in the Performance subscale test ( p = 0.03). The developmental quotients of infants from poorer socioeconomic background s were significantly lower than those living in more privileged circumstanc es. At 48 mo, 153 (97%) of the children presented with normal gross motor d evelopment. Four infants had cerebral palsy. No differences were noted in t he motor outcomes between the infants of women with normal umbilical artery waveforms and those with end-diastolic umbilical artery Doppler how veloci ties.