Extended Perinatal Mortality Audit in a Rural Hospital in India.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to describe the status of perinatal mortality (PM) in an Indian rural hospital. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of data was compiled from PM meetings (April 2017 to December 2018) following "Making Every Baby Count: audit and review of stillbirths and neonatal deaths (ENAP or Every Newborn Action Plan)." RESULTS: The study includes 8,801 livebirths, 105 stillbirths (SBs); 74 antepartum stillbirths [ASBs], 22 intrapartum stillbirths [ISBs], and nine unknown timing stillbirths [USBs]), 39 neonatal deaths or NDs (perinatal death or PDs 144). The higher risks for ASBs were maternal age >34 years, previous history of death, and/or SBs. Almost half of the PDs could be related with antepartum complications. More than half of the ASB were related with preeclampsia/eclampsia and abruptio placentae; one-third of the ISB were related with preeclampsia/eclampsia and gestational hypertension, fetal growth restriction, and placental dysfunction. The main maternal conditions differed between PDs (p = 0.005). The main causes of the ND were infections, congenital malformations, complications of prematurity, intrapartum complications, and unknown. The stillbirth rate was 11.8/1,000 births, neonatal mortality rate 4.4/1,000 livebirths, and perinatal mortality rate 15.8/1,000 births. CONCLUSION: This is the first study of its kind in Andhra Pradesh being the first step for the analysis and prevention of PM. KEY POINTS: · Many conditions that lead to stillbirths are linked to neonatal deaths and PM has been outside of the global parameters from the last decades.. · This is the first study following International Classification of Disease perinatal mortality codes and the audit of ENAP in Andhra Pradesh.. · Extended PM and mortality are mainly caused by similar preventable and treatable conditions..

Learning and memory disabilities in IUGR babies: Functional and molecular analysis in a rat model.

INTRODUCTION: 1Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is the failure of the fetus to achieve its inherent growth potential, and it has frequently been associated with neurodevelopmental problems in childhood. Neurological disorders are mostly associated with IUGR babies with an abnormally high cephalization index (CI) and a brain sparing effect. However, a similar correlation has never been demonstrated in an animal model. The aim of this study was to determine the correlations between CI, functional deficits in learning and memory and alterations in synaptic proteins in a rat model of IUGR. METHODS: 2Utero-placental insufficiency was induced by meso-ovarian vessel cauterization (CMO) in pregnant rats at embryonic day 17 (E17). Learning performance in an aquatic learning test was evaluated 25 days after birth and during 10 days. Some synaptic proteins were analyzed (PSD95, Synaptophysin) by Western blot and immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: 3Placental insufficiency in CMO pups was associated with spatial memory deficits, which are correlated with a CI above the normal range. CMO pups presented altered levels of synaptic proteins PSD95 and synaptophysin in the hippocampus. CONCLUSIONS: 4The results of this study suggest that learning disabilities may be associated with altered development of excitatory neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. Although interspecific differences in fetal response to placental insufficiency should be taken into account, the translation of these data to humans suggest that both IUGR babies and babies with a normal birth weight but with intrauterine Doppler alterations and abnormal CI should be closely followed to detect neurodevelopmental alterations during the postnatal period.

A prospective incidence study of nosocomial infections in a neonatal care unit.

BACKGROUND: Health care improvements and technical advances for diagnostic and therapeutic management in the neonatal care unit (NCU) have made possible the increasing survival of neonates with severe pathologic conditions. However, nosocomial infections (NI) still represent an important cause of morbidity and mortality in this population. OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiologic profile of NI in the NCU. METHODS: A prospective surveillance study was performed in the NCU at a university hospital in Barcelona during 6 months. Two hundred sixty-eight neonates were admitted during the study period. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention criteria were used as standard definitions for NI. Data including risk factors associated with NI were recorded. RESULTS: Sixty-five neonates had a total of 88 NI. The incidence rate of NI was 1.6 per 100 patient-days. The accumulative rate of NI was 32.7 per 100 admissions. Bacteremia (28.4%), conjunctivitis (19.5%), respiratory infection (10.2%), and urinary tract infection (7.9%) were the most common episodes observed. Gram-positive bacteria were the most commonly isolated germs (76.4%), with coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (72.5%) being the main pathogen. Intrinsic risk factors related to NI were low birth weight (<1000 g) and urinary catheter and peripheral venous catheter (P<.01). CONCLUSIONS: NI represent an important and frequent problem in neonates. Knowledge of the incidence of NI allows the targeting and implementation of preventive strategies for reducing morbidity and mortality related to NI in an NCU.

Rethinking classification of prematurity: a new clinical algorithm that improves etiologic assignment of preterm births.

BACKGROUND: There is a need for a better etiologic classification of preterm births and for tools to help to determine the possible etiologies of these births. OBJECTIVE: Having previously developed the Barcelona Etiology of Prematurity (BEP) algorithm, based on a new classification for preterm births, we sought to validate this algorithm in clinical studies whereby doctors retrospectively assigned the etiology of preterm birth according to principal cause and associated causes. METHOD: In phase 1 of the study, 91 preterm neonates consecutively admitted to a tertiary hospital were etiologically classified by doctors using the BEP algorithm. In phase 2, another 29 cases, representing the full spectrum of standard clinical scenarios, were classified by 20 doctors randomly divided into two groups of 10: one group used the algorithm and the other did not. RESULTS: In phase 1, the doctors were able to assign the etiology of all 91 clinical cases using the BEP algorithm, showing a 95.6% level of agreement with the etiologies set by the authors. In phase 2, for the 572 total evaluations, the group that used the BEP algorithm had significantly fewer errors in assigning the principal cause of prematurity than the group that did not use the algorithm (4.51 vs. 16.20%, respectively; p < 0.0001), and also demonstrated a higher level of correlation in assigning the associated causes. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed classification may be used to retrospectively categorize the etiology of preterm births, and the BEP algorithm facilitates this task enabling greater accuracy and precision in clinical data.

Impact of histological chorioamnionitis, funisitis and clinical chorioamnionitis on neurodevelopmental outcome of preterm infants.

BACKGROUND: The role of chorioamnionitis in neurodevelopment of preterm infants is not fully understood. AIM: To examine the association between different indicators of intrauterine inflammation (clinical chorioamnionitis, histological chorioamnionitis and funisitis) and neurodevelopmental impairment in very preterm infants. METHODS: Preterm infants with a birth weight of <1500 g or a gestational age of <32 weeks were included. Follow-up evaluation up to 2 years of age consisted of neurological examination, neurodevelopmental assessment and visual and audiologic tests. Outcome data were compared between the chorioamnionitis and the control groups, controlling for gestational age, birth weight and Apgar score at 5 min. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-seven patients comprised the study population (mean gestational age 29±2 weeks, mean birth weight 1167±344 g). Histological chorioamnionitis was present in 49% of placentas, whereas funisitis was observed in 25%. In 57% cases clinical maternal chorioamnionitis was suspected. Follow-up was available for 130 (82%) patients. Infants with funisitis, compared with controls, had a significantly higher incidence of moderate to severe disability (18% vs 5%, OR 4.07; 95% CI 1.10-15.09). CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that, unlike a broad definition of histological chorioamnionitis including inflammation of maternal or fetal placental tissues, funisitis may entail a higher risk of moderate to severe disability at 2 years of age in preterm infants.

Peritoneal drainage as primary management in necrotizing enterocolitis: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: The use of peritoneal drainage (PD) in neonates with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is controversial. The authors began to perform it successfully in infants with pneumoperitoneum, and subsequently they extended its use to infants with peritonitis and advanced NEC before radiologic evidence of peritoneal free air. To analyze the efficacy of PD they began a prospective study. METHODS: A prospective study was conducted in 6 neonatal intensive care units (NICU) in Spain: neonates with pneumoperitoneum or peritonitis and advanced NEC were all included, whatever the birth weight and gestational age (GA). RESULTS: PD was performed in 47 infants, but 3 of them were excluded because pneumoperitoneum was caused by pathologies other than NEC. In a cohort of 44 infants, 86% improved after PD, and 64% survived after only PD. After PD, 54% of infants needed delayed surgery. Overall survival rate was 82%; 57% infants with birth weight under 1,000 g, and 95% in infants over 1,000 g at birth. The main cause of mortality was massive NEC in the tiniest babies. Only one infant had a short bowel syndrome. CONCLUSIONS: From the authors' point of view, PD is the first step in treating neonates with pneumoperitoneum or overwhelming NEC, regardless of birth weight and GA. Laparotomy, if it is necessary, always must be performed after clinical stability is achieved. Mortality rates remain higher in the tiniest babies because of massive NEC.