Noradrenaline content of cerebrospinal fluid in preterm and term infants recovering from perinatal asphyxia.

Noradrenaline content was measured in the cerebrospinal fluid of 17 full-term and 16 premature newborns with or without perinatal asphyxia. Upon the effect of asphyxia the noradrenaline content of cerebrospinal fluid exhibited a more than three-fold increase (from 2.61 +/- 1.45 microgram/l to 10.86 +/- 4.02 micrograms/l) in mature newborns, but it decreased to about half of the control value in premature babies (from 2.39 +/- 0.72 microgram/l to 1.25 +/- 0.70 microgram/l). The observations emphasize the role of central noradrenergic structures in the organization of asphyxia-induced stress-response and in the regulation of adaptation to extrauterine life.