RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the survival rate, complications during hospitalization, and prognostic factors in extremely preterm infants (gestational age less than 28 weeks) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on 90 extremely preterm infants who were admitted to the NICU between January 2011 and March 2013 to investigate the perinatal data, delivery and resuscitation, ventilation/oxygen supply during hospitalization, mortality, and the incidence of severe (grade III/IV) intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), and septicemia. RESULTS: Among the 90 extremely preterm infants, the gestational age, birth weight, overall survival rate, mortality, and withdrawal rate were 26±1 weeks, 898±165â g, 57%, 9%, and 34%, respectively. The incidence rates of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome, BPD, PDA, ROP, and grade III/IV IVH were 88%, 85%, 69%, 68%, and 31%, respectively. The surviving infants had a mean length of hospital stay of 83±18 days and a mean weight at discharge of 2 419±300â g. The multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that grade III/IV IVH and pulmonary hemorrhage were high-risk factors for death or withdrawal, while antenatal corticosteroids were the protective factor for outcome (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The survival rate of extremely preterm infants is still much lower than that in developed countries. grade III/IV IVH, and pulmonary hemorrhage are important prognostic factors.