Developmental brain injury

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Special Topic Developmental Neuroscience 2002, Vol. 24, No. 5 The immature brain is vulnerable to a number of prenatal and early postnatal stresses, such as maternal infection and birth asphyxia, which may produce permanent brain damage leading to neurological dysfunction in the survivors. The dysfunction depends on the developmental stage, as well as the type, severity and duration of the insult. Information obtained from human infants combined with data from several experimental animal models highlight the interaction of hypoxia-ischemia, excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, seizures, and inflammation on the pathophysiology of developmental brain injury and ultimate neurologic outcome. This special issue presents new insights from clinical and basic science research into the pathophysiology of these injuries and reports pre-clinical tests of new therapies to prevent them. Thus, it provides valuable information for developmental neuroscientists, both clinical and basic, who are involved in the study of the immature nervous system, its vulnerability and the consequences for neurologic development.