Injury

Abstract

Exploration of the consequences of brain insult sustained early in life has a long history, dating back to the 1920s and the seminal works of Lashley (1929), Kennard (1938, 1942), and Hebb (1949), and later comprehensive reviews (e.g., Finger & Stein, 1982; Isaacson, 1975; St James-Roberts, 1975). In this literature, while insults in infancy and early childhood were regarded as qualitatively and quantitatively distinct from those occurring in adulthood, there was little agreement regarding the potential benefits and vulnerabilities of early brain insult.