Although the incidence of brain injury in infants is only 2 to 5 per 1000 births, the legal and medical costs, the developmental delays and the impact on the family are profound. Twenty to 30% of survivors of brain injury have some long-term neurologic sequelae. Over the past 30 years, evidence has been accumulating for the neuroplasticity of the human brain, allowing for recovery after injury of important brain regions. Neurons lost to injury or disease may not be replaced, yet axonal and dendritic processes can regenerate to reestablish synaptic connections. Although prior studies have used early intervention based on the concept of neuroplasticity, there has been no control for the extent of brain damage present in the subjects prior to implementing intervention, nor was there a physiologic measure of outcome. In the present study, an environment enrichment program, which will include individualized cognitive/sensorimotor stimulation, will be offered in the form of a home-based, two-year intensive program. The control group infants will receive the current state-funded follow-up program provided by the Los Angeles Regional Centers. The experimental group will receive the research-funded home intervention, utilizing Utah State University's developmental Curriculum and Monitoring System (CAMS). The intervention will be given by the child's parents under the guidance of public health nurses for one year. Following the intervention, several measures will be used to determine cognitive, motor and maternal outcomes. Functional MRI brain studies will be conducted to assess sensorimotor representation qualitatively and quantitatively. The proposed intervention is expected to: enhance cognitive and sensorimotor development in infants with brain injury, increase compensatory neuronal activation related to sensorimotor function in infants with brain injury, improve parent-infant interaction and reduce the stress experienced by mothers.
| Badr, Lina Kurdahi; Bookheimer, Susan; Purdy, Isabell et al. (2009) Predictors of neurodevelopmental outcome for preterm infants with brain injury: MRI, medical and environmental factors. Early Hum Dev 85:279-84 |
| Lina Kurdahi Badr (2009) Statistical versus clinical significance for infants with brain injury: reanalysis of outcome data from a randomized controlled study. Clin Nurs Res 18:136-52 |
| Badr, Lina Kurdahi; Garg, Meena; Kamath, Meghna (2006) Intervention for infants with brain injury: results of a randomized controlled study. Infant Behav Dev 29:80-90 |
