Abstract
The prognostic value of the single items of a standardised neurological examination,
the Hammersmith Infant Neurologic Examination (HINE), was explored longitudinally
in 658 infants at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months post-term age. ROC curves were built based
on the presence/absence of cerebral palsy at 2 years of age. Global HINE scores showed
very high prediction (ROC curve areas above 0.9) at all ages. The items with the highest
predictive value were always movement quality and quantity. In the first semester,
among the most predictive items were those assessing tone, while beyond that time
they were reflexes and reactions. Our results show that the high predictive value
of the HINE across the first year of life is granted by the successful combination
of different groups of items for each age-period. This should be recognised in clinical
practice when assessing the significance of individual neurological profiles.
Key words
infant - cerebral palsy - neurological risk - predictive value - ROC curve
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Correspondence
A. GuzzettaMD
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Pisa
Italy
Phone: +39/050/88 63 23
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Email: a.guzzetta@inpe.unipi.it
