Neurodevelopmental follow-up at five years corrected age of extremely low birth weight infants after postnatal replacement of 17β-estradiol and progesterone.

Context: Extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants are prone to impaired neurodevelopment.
Objective: The aim was to determine long-term neurodevelopmental outcome in ELBW infants after postnatal 17β-estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) replacement.
Design: At 5-yr corrected age, ELBW infants were assessed for standardized cognitive and neurological outcome after postnatal randomized E2 and P replacement or placebo administration.
Setting: The follow-up examination was performed in a neuropediatric ambulatory care center.
Patients: Sixty-one of 71 surviving infants (86%) were available for follow-up.
Main Outcome Measures: Cognitive and neurological outcome was evaluated using the Kaufmann Assessment Battery for Children, the Gross Motor Function Classification Scale, and clinical neurological examination.
Results: No significant differences were found between the replacement and placebo groups for the Gross Motor Function Classification Scale, presence of paresis, cerebral palsy, spasticity, and ametropia. However, a significant time-response relationship was found with E2 and P replacement. Every day of treatment reduced the risk for cerebral palsy (P=0.03), spasticity (P=0.01), and ametropia (P=0.01).
Conclusion: Postnatal E2 and P replacement may have potential in improving neurodevelopmental outcome in ELBW infants. Larger trials are needed to test this new hypothesis.