State-of-the-art cranial ultrasound in clinical scenarios for infants born at term and near-term

Abstract

Neonates admitted to the intensive care unit are at risk of brain injury. Importantly, infants with signs of neurological impairment need prompt diagnosis to guide intervention. Cranial ultrasound (CUS) is the first-line imaging tool for infants born preterm. New developments in this technology, which now incorporates high-resolution equipment, have notably improved the performance of CUS in infants born at term and near-term. On the other hand, the potential of CUS as a diagnostic tool in older infants is less established. The lack of studies focusing on this topic, local protocol variability among clinical sites, and divergent opinions on CUS patterns of disease entities are the main constraints. This review provides an overview of state-of-the-art CUS as a decision-making tool under different clinical scenarios, such as neonatal encephalopathy, seizures, and suspected central nervous system infection. The CUS features that characterize several patterns supporting a diagnosis are detailed, focusing on haemorrhage and infection.