Corpus callosum size in relation to motor performance in 9- to 10-year-old children with neonatal encephalopathy.

Magnetic resonance imaging studies have contributed to recognize the patterns of cerebral injury related to neonatal encephalopathy (NE). We assessed whether a smaller corpus callosum (CC) explained the difference in motor performance between school-age children with NE and controls. Frontal, middle, and posterior areas of the CC were measured in 61 9-10-y-old children with NE and in 47 controls. Motor performance was determined using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (M-ABC). Linear regression was used to assess whether differences in M-ABC between NE children and controls could be explained by CC size. The CC of 11/30 children with NE type I according to Sarnat (NE I) and 19/36 children with NE type II according to Sarnat (NE II) showed generalized or focal thinning, compared with 8/49 controls. Children with NE II had significantly smaller middle and posterior parts and total areas of the CC. Children with NE scored significantly worse on the M-ABC than controls. The reduction in size of the posterior part of the CC partly explained the mean differences on the M-ABC. Children with NE have poorer motor skills than controls, which is partly explained by a smaller size of the CC.