CBF Levels of Neuron-Specific Enolase Severity/ Hypoxic-Ischemic / Hypothermia

Cerebrospinal fluid levels of neuron-specific enolase (CSF-NSE) during the first 72 hours correlate with other tools used to assess ongoing brain damage, including clinical grading of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), abnormal patterns in amplitude integrated electroencephalography (aEEG) and (MRI)

The HIE group showed higher levels of CSF-NSE than the control group: median 70 ng/ml (29; 205) vs 10.6 ng/ml (7.7; 12.9); p <0.001. Median levels of CSF-NSE with severe, moderate, and mild HIE were 220.5 ng/ml (120.5; 368.8), 45.5 ng/ml (26, 75.3), and 26 ng/ml (18, 33), respectively. CSF-NSE levels correlated were significantly higher with seizures, abnormal aEEG, or abnormal MRI, compared to those without abnormalities. CSF-NSE concentrations for hypoxic-ischemic.

CSF-NSE levels in the control group were 10.6 (7.7; 12.9). CSF-NSE levels in 20, 12, and 11 with severe, moderate, and mild HIE, respectively, were 220.5 ng/ml (120.5; 368.8), 45.5 ng/ml (26, 75.3), and 26 ng/ml (18, 33). No statistically significant differences were found between any of the grades of HIE compared to controls or between any of the grades of HIE (analysis of variance after log-transformation of CSF-NSE values, with post hoc pairwise analysis); p<0.05. HIE: hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy; CSF-NSE: cerebrospinal fluid–neuron specific enolase.