Characterization of Clinical MRI Findings in Moderately-Late Preterm Infants Diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy: A Single Center Retrospective Study

I.

Cerebral Palsy is the most common movement disorder in childhood and is commonly associated with brain injury and prematurity. At least 10% of patients have a normal brain MRI and current practices suggest genetic testing may be indicated for those patients. However, given that prematurity itself is a risk factor for CP, which MRI patterns are present in premature infants and which genetic causes are present remains unclear. In the present study, a cohort of moderate-late preterm infants born between 32 and 34 weeks gestational age was analyzed to determine whether CP disease severity, comorbid conditions, and genetic testing are associated with particular MRI findings. We identified that comorbid conditions and CP severity are similar across imaging patterns regardless of the perceived severity of the imaging findings. Genetic diagnoses were identified in 13% of all patients. In patients with MRI concerning for injuries, over 20% had genetic testing sent. Abnormal MRI findings in moderate-late preterm infants with CP are common, but are not a strong predictor of disease severity and may be associated with underlying genetic causes that are underdiagnosed due to unclear practice guidelines.