Ann Acad Med Singap
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Ann Acad Med Singap · Feb 2018
Long-Term Neurodevelopmental Outcomes of Premature Infants in Singapore.
Neonatal care advances have resulted in improved survival but have raised concerns of increase in neurodevelopmental impairment. This study looked at long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes at ages 5 and 8 years of very low birthweight infants born in the 2000s as compared to the 1990s. Neurodevelopmental assessment at 2 years old was compared to that at 5 and 8 years to determine if assessment at 2 years was predictive of later outcomes. ⋯ Over a decade, neurodevelopmental outcomes did not worsen despite lower mean gestational age. Long- term improvement in IQ scores and a reduction in visual impairment rates were seen. Our data suggests that children without neurodevelopmental impairment at 2 years are without impairment later on; therefore, they may need only developmental monitoring with targeted assessments instead of routine formal IQ assessments.
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Ann Acad Med Singap · Feb 2018
Triaging Primary Care Patients Referred for Chest Pain to Specialist Cardiology Centres: Efficacy of an Optimised Protocol.
Patients referred for chest pain from primary care have increased, along with demand for outpatient cardiology consultations. We evaluated 'Triage Protocol' that implements standardised diagnostic testing prior to patients' first cardiology consultation. ⋯ By implementing diagnostic cardiac testing prior to patients' first specialist consultation, the 'Triage Protocol' expedited diagnosis and reduced subsequent visits across all risk groups in ambulatory chest pain patients.