Comparing risk factors associated with the late detection of critical congenital heart disease at different facility levels.

AIMS: Critical congenital heart disease (CCHD) requires surgery or catheter intervention within the first year of life; delayed diagnoses result in worsened outcomes. In Japan, there are few reports of delayed CCHD diagnosis. We investigated the diagnoses and factors associated with the late detection of CCHD. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study evaluated 88 CCHD infants admitted to a level IV facility. We compared the late detection rates across facility levels of neonatal care and CCHD characteristics. RESULTS: Critical congenital heart disease was identified prenatally in 46 (52%) infants: early (≤3 days postnatally) in 29 (33%) and late (≥4 days postnatally) in 13 (15%). The oxygen saturation of 27 of 29 infants with early detection and 7 of 13 infants with late detection was measured using pulse oximetry within 3 days postnatally. Factors associated with the late detection of CCHD were lack of clinical recognition of symptoms in five infants, referral to higher-level facilities after discharge in four infants, and definitive diagnosis not confirmed using echocardiography in four infants. The most common factors associated with late detection were referral to higher-level facilities after discharge in level I facilities and definitive diagnosis not confirmed using echocardiography in level II facilities. CONCLUSION: Critical congenital heart disease may require advanced knowledge and echocardiographic techniques for diagnosis. Pulse oximetry and telemedicine should also be incorporated in the diagnostic algorithm. Improvement in these factors might contribute to reducing the late detection of CCHD.

Relationship Between Frequency of Remote Visitation and Postpartum Depression in Mothers of Hospitalized Neonates During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between symptoms of postpartum depression and the number of remote visitations among mothers of infants in the NICU. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: NICU in a medical university in Iwate, Japan. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 89 mothers of infants who spent more than 1 month in the NICU from June 2021 to December 2022. METHODS: Participants completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 4 days and 1 month after birth. We used a one-way analysis of variance with Tukey-Kramer or Games-Howell post hoc tests to examine differences in postpartum depression among three groups based on the frequency of remote visitation: frequent visitation, rare visitation, or no visitation. RESULTS: Of the 89 mothers, 41 scored 9 points or higher on the EPDS conducted 4 days after birth; among them, 14 did not visit, 13 rarely visited, and 14 frequently visited the NICU remotely through a web camera. The rare visitation group had significantly higher EPDS scores 1 month after birth (M = 9.7, SD = 5.2) than the frequent (M = 5.3, SD = 3.7) and no visitation (M = 5.1, SD = 4.2) groups (p < .05). The rare visitation group demonstrated lower improvement on the EPDS than the frequent and no visitation groups (nonsignificant). CONCLUSION: It is unclear whether remote visitation reduces symptoms of postpartum depression; however, the frequency of remote visitation could be assessed to identify at-risk mothers in need of social support.

Effects of Total Parenteral Nutrition on Serum Osmolality and Patent Ductus Arteriosus.

BACKGROUND: The persistence of high serum osmolality in the early postnatal period is a risk for developing patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). Early aggressive nutrition (EAN), involving total parenteral nutrition (TPN), by which enough concentrations of glucose and amino acids are administered intravenously, is recommended postnatally to improve the neurological prognosis in preterm infants. However, the effects of EAN involving TPN on serum osmolality and the development of a PDA have not been adequately studied. OBJECTIVES: Thus, in this study, we aimed to investigate the impact of TPN on serum osmolality and determine whether increased serum osmolality could be associated with a higher incidence of PDA in preterm infants. METHODS: In this single-center retrospective observational study, preterm infants born at <28 weeks of gestation who had been admitted to our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) before (pre-TPN period) and after the introduction of TPN (post-TPN) were included. We reviewed the medical records of these patients, compared the changes in serum osmolality from birth to five days after birth, the clinical background, and the incidence of PDA between these two periods, and analyzed the risk factors. Additionally, the factors affecting the serum osmolality in very preterm infants were examined. The patients who met the intervention criteria of our NICU and received a cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitor, Indacin® (Nobelpharma, Tokyo, Japan), within seven days after birth were classified as PDA+; those who could not be identified to have PDA flow by echo and did not receive a COX inhibitor were classified as PDA-. RESULTS: The postnatal day and serum sodium (Na+) were statistically significantly correlated with a higher serum osmolality. Serum osmolality remained statistically significantly higher in the PDA+ cohort compared with the PDA- cohort after the first day of life. However, no statistically significant differences were observed in serum osmolality after 24 hours of age, weeks of gestational age, birth weight, or incidence of PDA between the pre- and post-TPN periods. The results of the multiple logistic regression analyses revealed that the increased serum osmolality correlated with PDA development. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, the serum Na+ statistically significantly correlated with a higher serum osmolality. Moreover, the increased serum osmolality correlated with PDA development. Thus, the prevention of hypernatremia might reduce the incidence of PDA. Nonetheless, the findings in this study revealed that no statistically significant differences in serum osmolality were observed between the pre-and post-TPN periods, indicating that TPN had little effect on serum osmolality.

Predictive Ability of Combined Factor Scores for Chromosomal Abnormalities in Pregnant Women With Polyhydramnios.

AIM: This study investigated factors that can predict chromosomal abnormalities in pregnant women with polyhydramnios. The ability of prenatal factors to predict chromosomal abnormalities was evaluated using receiver operator characteristic curves. METHODS: Of 76 eligible pregnant women, major anomalies were detected in 41 (54%) and chromosomal abnormalities in 19 (25%): trisomy 13 in one, trisomy 18 in 10, trisomy 21 in seven, and 22q11.2 deletion syndrome in one. Combined factor scores, including maternal age, major anomaly, abdominal circumference percentile, femur length percentile, and estimated fetal weight percentile, proved to be good predictors (area under the curve, 0.81-0.87) of chromosomal abnormalities and showed a sensitivity of 79% and specificity of 75%. CONCLUSION: Combined scores demonstrated more accuracy than individual factors for predicting chromosomal abnormalities. Even if an anomaly is not detected on fetal ultrasonography, in cases with higher scores, chromosomal abnormalities should be suspected, and delivery at a level III facility may be recommended.

Predictive ability of neonatal illness severity scores for early death in extremely premature infants.

BACKGROUND: The predictive ability of neonatal illness severity scores for mortality or morbidity in extremely premature infants has not been extensively studied. We aimed to evaluate the ability of neonatal illness severity scores [Clinical Risk Index for Babies II (CRIB II), Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology II (SNAP-II), and SNAP-Perinatal Extension II (SNAPPE-II)] in predicting mortality and short-term morbidity of extremely premature infants. METHODS: This retrospective study involved 171 infants with gestational age (GA) between 22 and 27 weeks who were admitted to the NICU during 2010-2017. Predictive ability of neonatal illness severity scores for mortality and short-term morbidity (bronchopulmonary dysplasia, retinopathy of prematurity, intraventricular hemorrhage, necrotizing enterocolitis, and gastrointestinal perforation) was assessed by comparing their area under the receiver operating characteristic curve. RESULTS: The overall mortality rate was 11.1%. Mortality at 23 weeks' gestation was higher than that at 24-27 weeks' gestation (p < .01, adjusted residual 4.5). Neonatal illness severity scores were significantly higher in infants who died than in those who survived (p < .01). CRIB II (AUC 0.93, 95% CI 0.85-1.00), SNAP-II (AUC 0.90, 95% CI 0.76-1.00), and SNAPPE-II (AUC 0.95, 95% CI 0.91-0.99) appeared to be excellent predictors and were superior to birth weight (AUC 0.88, 95% CI 0.80-0.95) or GA (AUC 0.84, 95% CI 0.72-0.96) alone in predicting early death (died on <28th postnatal day). CRIB II, SNAP-II, and SNAPPE-II were better predictors of early death than mortality in extremely premature infants. Neonatal illness severity score and short-term morbidity were not strongly associated. CONCLUSIONS: The neonatal illness severity scores were excellent predictors of early death in extremely premature infants and might be useful for selecting extremely preterm infants who need intervention.