Management of transient central diabetes insipidus with intravenous desmopressin in a premature infant with gastroschisis and septo-optic dysplasia: A case report.

Central diabetes insipidus (CDI) may occur in the setting of intracranial abnormalities that affect the hypothalamus-pituitary system. It occurs rarely in neonates, especially in the premature population, and represents a challenging disease process to treat pharmacologically. Little is known regarding the treatment options in premature infants, including dose and route of administration of intravenous desmopressin (DDAVP). We present a case of a late premature male infant with gastroschisis and septo-optic dysplasia who developed transient CDI. He was treated with intravenous DDAVP but required frequent laboratory monitoring and a multidisciplinary approach, and ultimately his CDI resolved. Although there are minimal guidelines regarding the appropriate formulation and dosage of DDAVP for management of CDI in infants, we initiated the lowest dose available and titrated the medication based on close monitoring of urine output and serum sodium levels in order to successfully treat his transient CDI.

Newborn hearing screening in the NICU: profile of failed auditory brainstem response/passed otoacoustic emission.

OBJECTIVE: Incidence of a specific pattern of auditory responses, absent auditory brainstem responses (ABRs) and present otoacoustic emissions (OAEs), in newborn hearing screening in a regional perinatal center neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is described. This profile, labeled auditory neuropathy or auditory dyssynchrony (AN/AD), is a dysfunction in neural/brainstem transmission that occurs in individuals whose outer hairs cells are functioning normally. Although the AN/AD profile has been associated with various risk factors, incidence and prediction are unknown. METHOD: Analysis of electrophysiologic measures and medical record reviews of the first 22 months of the universal newborn hearing-screening program was conducted. Association of the AN/AD profile was evaluated with the following factors: gender, gestational age, ototoxic drug regimen, low birth weight, hyperbilirubinemia, hydrocephalus, low Apgar score, anoxia, respiratory distress syndrome, pulmonary hypertension, intraventricular hemorrhage, multiple birth, seizure activity, and family history. RESULTS: One hundred fifteen (24.1%) of the 477 infants failed the ABR in 1 or both ears and passed OAEs bilaterally. Comparisons of infants fitting the AN/AD profile with those not fitting the AN/AD profile were negative with 3 exceptions: those with hyperbilirubinemia and those who were administered vancomycin or furosemide. A logistic-regression analysis model failed to predict which infants would be at risk for the AN/AD profile either unilaterally or bilaterally. CONCLUSIONS: Screening of NICU infants should be conducted with ABR first, followed by OAE after failure on ABR. Because the incidence of the AN/AD profile was found to be 24% in this at-risk population, additional study is warranted.