Hypothermia at neonatal intensive care unit admission was not associated with respiratory disease or death in very preterm infants

Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia in Extremely Premature Infants: A Scoping Review for Identifying Risk Factors

BACKGROUND

Over the years, bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) affects the pulmonary function of infants, resulting in chronic health burdens for infants and their families. The aim of this scoping review was to screen available evidence regarding perinatal risk factors associated with the development and severity of BPD.

METHODS

The eligibility criteria of the studies were year of publication between 2016 and 2021; setting of a developed country; English or Japanese as the study language; and randomized controlled, cohort, or case-control design. The titles and abstracts of the studies were screened by independent reviewers.

RESULTS

Of 8189 eligible studies, 3 were included for severe BPD and 26 were included for moderate BPD. The risk factors for severe BPD were male sex, iatrogenic preterm birth, maternal hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), low gestational age, small-for-gestational-age (SGA) birth weight, mechanical ventilation on day 1, and need for patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) management. The risk factors for moderate or severe BPD included male sex, premature rupture of membranes, clinical chorioamnionitis, maternal HDP, SGA birth weight, bubbly/cystic appearance on X-ray, and PDA management.

CONCLUSIONS

We identified several risk factors for BPD. We plan to confirm the validity of the new classification using the existing dataset.

Incidence, time to recovery and predictors among neonates admitted with respiratory distress to the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia, 2021

BACKGROUND

One of the major factors contributing to newborn morbidity and mortality across the globe is respiratory distress. In resource-constrained developing nations like Ethiopia, it is a significant issue. Depending on the quality of the care provided, the incidence and time to recovery may differ amongst medical facilities. However, Ethiopia still lacks appropriate data on the incidence and time to recovery from respiratory distress.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to assess the incidence, time to recovery, and predictors among neonates admitted with respiratory distress in the neonatal intensive care unit at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital.

METHODS

An institution-based retrospective follow-up study design was conducted among 452 neonates with respiratory distress. Data were collected using a data extraction checklist from the medical registry. The extracted data were entered into EPI INFO version 7.2.1.0 and then exported to STATA version 14 for analysis. The median time to recovery, the Kaplan Meier curve, and the log-rank test was computed. Both bi-variable and multivariable Cox regression models were applied to analyze the data. p-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

Of all respiratory distressed neonate,311 were recovered. The overall incidence rate of neonates admitted with from respiratory distress was 11.5 per 100-neonate day (95% CI: 10.30-12. 87) with 2,703-person day observation and the median time to recovery from respiratory distress was 7 days with (IQR = 3-13 days). Predictors of time to recovery from respiratory distress were very low birth weight (AHR = 0.17, 95% CI: 0.08-0.41), low birth weight (AHR = 0.50, 95% CI: 0.31-0.81), very preterm (AHR = 0.42,95% CI:0.20-0.89), sepsis (AHR = 0.50 95% CI: 0.38-0.65), hypothermia (AHR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.39-0.81), and Apgar scores less than seven at first (AHR = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.15-0.79) and fifth minute (AHR = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.20-0.97).

CONCLUSION

The incidence and time to recovery in this study were discreetly acceptable as compared to previous study. The aforementioned predictors could be used to identify neonates with respiratory distress who are at risk of developing a long-term illness and guide prompt referral to hospitals. This will also provide clinicians with prognostic information, as longer recovery times have economic and social implications in resource limited countries like Ethiopia.

Admission temperature and neonatal outcomes - single-centre experience in Saudi Arabia

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the association between admission hypothermia (AH), neonatal mortality and major neonatal morbidities in preterm infants <33 weeks' gestation. An additional aim of the study was to examine changes in the prevalence of admission hypothermia after the initiation of a thermoregulation quality improvement (QI) project.

Method

This is a retrospective cohort study of preterm infants < 33 weeks' gestation born at King AbdulAziz Medical City Riyadh (KAMC-R) between January 2017 to December 2020.

Results

Eight-hundred infants were born during the study period. Four hundred and one infants (50.1%) had an admission temperature of <36.5 °C and a further 399 (49.9%) had an admission temperature of >36.5 °C. The mortality before discharge was 15.7% in infants with AH compared to 4.8% among those with an admission temperature above 36.5 °C. This remained statistically significant after adjustments for gestational age and maternal PET status on a multivariate analysis (P = .001, OR 2.7,95%CI 1.5-4.7). The need for mechanical ventilation (P = .005) and incidence of surgical NEC (P = .030) were significantly different between the two temperature groups. Mean (SD) admission temperature increased from 36.3 °C to 36.6 °C following the thermoregulation intervention program (P <.001). Admission temperature <36 °C is associated with higher mortality in the first week (P = .001, OR 3.3,95% CI (1.7-6.6)) and increased incidence of cystic PVL (P = .04, OR 2.1, CI (1.03-4.3)).

Conclusion

Preterm infants with AH suffered higher mortality and greater neonatal morbidities.

Incidence, predictors of success and outcome of LISA in very preterm infants

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to examine the success rate of less invasive surfactant administration (LISA), to identify early predictive factors for the outcome of LISA, and to compare neonatal outcomes between the LISA failure group and the group of infants who were successfully treated with LISA.

DESIGN

A retrospective cohort study.

PATIENTS

Infants born at less than 33 weeks of gestation (n = 158) and treated with LISA for respiratory distress syndrome.

RESULTS

LISA was successful in 86 cases (54.4%); 72 preterm infants (45.6%) needed additional surfactant therapy and/or mechanical ventilation in the first 72 h (LISA failure). In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, six independent predictors of LISA success were identified: core temperature at the time of admission (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 3.56), dose of poractant alfa (<200 mg/kg; adjusted OR: 0.254), elevated C-reactive protein (>10 mg/L) at 24 h of life (adjusted OR: 0.28), highest respiratory severity score (RSS) during the first hour of life or at the time of LISA (adjusted OR: 0.463), maternal age (adjusted OR: 0.923), and birth weight (adjusted OR: 1.003). The receiver operating curve created by using the identified factors indicates good predictive power with an area under the curve of 0.85. LISA failure was associated with a substantially higher risk of complications.

CONCLUSION

LISA success can be predicted by variables available before the intervention. Failure of LISA is relatively frequent event in very preterm infants and is associated with adverse outcomes. Prevention of hypothermia during early stabilization and appropriate dosing of surfactant may increase LISA success rates and improve patient outcome.

Hypothermia in neonates born by caesarean section at a tertiary hospital in South Africa

INTRODUCTION

neonatal hypothermia has previously been noted in a large proportion of neonates born through Caesarean section at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital (CHBAH), yet no study in South Africa specifically explores the extent and severity of the threat of hypothermia to this population of neonates.

OBJECTIVES

to describe the proportion and severity of neonatal hypothermia in infants born via Caesarean section at CHBAH as well as to document and describe possible contributing factors to neonatal hypothermia in this population.

METHODS

A neonatal unit's database records were reviewed for demographic information of patients and their mothers, clinical characteristics, body temperature and outcomes. Comparisons between normothermic and hypothermic neonates were performed.

RESULTS

Forty-one percent of neonates born via Caesarean section had hypothermia at birth, of whom 71%, 27% and 2% had mild, moderate and severe hypothermia, respectively. Prevalence of admission hypothermia was 42%. On average, neonates were born at term and were of normal birth weight. No maternal factors were found to be statistically significant. Bag-mask ventilation (BMV) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) [3.4% vs. 0.7%, p-0.033; OR 2.67 (95% CI: 1.06-6.77)] and an elevated lactate [13.25 vs. 3.2 mmol/l, p-0.032; OR 1.13 (95% CI: 1.01-1.26)] were associated with hypothermia. In the multivariable logistic regression analysis hypothermia in neonates was associated with an elevated lactate.

CONCLUSIONS

Prevalence of hypothermia in neonates born by Caesarean section is high and further prospective studies are required to elucidate the factors contributing to this.

Self-reported syndromes of sexually transmitted infections and its associated factors among reproductive (15-49 years) age women in Ethiopia

Background

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) are among the most important causes of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. It remains a significant public health problem and disproportionately affects women posing a large public health burden in low and middle-income countries. However, there is little information on the magnitude of self-reported syndromes of STIs among reproductive-age women in Ethiopia.

Aim

This study aimed to determine the magnitude of self-reported syndromes of sexual transmitted infections and its associated factors among women of reproductive age in Ethiopia.

Methods

The study was based on the data from the Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey of 2016. The data on the status of self-reported STIs were extracted from the individual women dataset, and a total of 15,683 reproductive-age women were involved in the study. Since the data has a hierarchical and cluster nature sampling weight was applied for all analysis procedures to account for complex survey design. Rao-scot chi-square test that adjusts for complex sample design was used to examine the association of outcome and independent variables. In, multivariable analysis, the level of statistical significance was declared at P-value ≤ 0.05.

Findings and conclusions

The magnitude of self-reported STIs was 3.0 % (95% CI: 2.92–3.08). Among self-reported syndromes of STIs only, 33.3 % (158) seek care for sexually transmitted infections. Age (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR = 2.15; 95%CI:1.4, 3.4)), marital status (AOR = 1.72; 95%CI:1.02, 2.90), women attending higher education and above (AOR = 2.67; 95%CI:1.57,4.57), history of termination of pregnancy (AOR = 2.85; 95%CI:2.0,4.08), and risky sexual behavior (AOR = 1.72; 95%CI:1.02,2.90) were found to be associated with self-reported syndrome of sexually transmitted infections. The magnitude of self-reported syndromes of STI and health care seeking behaviors among reproductive-age women was found low. Therefore, the government should enhance the awareness of women for sexually transmitted syndromes, and increase accessibility of STI services. Moreover, qualitative studies should be done to identify the demand, supply, and barriers related to STI among women of reproductive age women in Ethiopia.

Body temperature instability and respiratory morbidity in the very low birth weight infant: a multiple case, intensive longitudinal study

Background

Very low birth weight (VLBW) infant thermal instability upon neonatal intensive care unit admission has been associated with respiratory morbidity; however, the association between ongoing thermal instability and respiratory morbidity remains unclear.

Methods

A longitudinal data analysis was conducted on 12 VLBW infants. Chronic respiratory morbidity risk was defined as supplemental oxygen requirement (FiO₂) or scheduled diuretic dosing at 36 weeks post-menstrual age. Acute respiratory morbidity was quantified as desaturations (SpO₂<90%), bradycardia with desaturations (HR<100 and SpO₂<90%), apnea, increase in FiO₂ requirement, or increase in respiratory support. Multi-level, mixed-effects models and regression analysis examined the relationships between body temperature over the first 14 days of life and respiratory morbidities.

Results

Body temperature was not associated with chronic respiratory morbidity risk (p=0.2765). Desaturations, bradycardia with desaturations, increased FiO₂ requirement, and increased respiratory support were associated with decreased body temperature (p<0.05). Apnea was associated with increased body temperature (p<0.05). The covariate-adjusted risk of desaturations (aOR=1.3), bradycardia with desaturations (aOR=2.2), increase in FiO₂ requirement (aOR=1.2), and increase in respiratory support (aOR=1.2) were significantly greater during episodes of hypothermia.

Conclusion

VLBW infants are dependent on a neutral thermal environment for optimal growth and development. Therefore, the significant associations between hypothermia and symptoms of acute respiratory morbidity require further study to delineate if these are causal relationships that could be attenuated with clinical practice changes, or if these are concurrent symptoms that cluster during episodes of physiological instability.

Evidence base multi-discipline critical strategies toward better tomorrow for very preterm infants

Despite advances in neonatal intensive care in the recent decade, a large number of very preterm infants (VPIs) remain at risk for significant neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI). Given that there are many interventions need to be implemented during the critical perinatal period so that complications of these vulnerable VPIs could be minimized, it is urgent to develop multi-discipline strategies based on evidence to be carried out. The objective of this new term evidence-based perinatal critical strategies (EBPCS), is to provide beneficial intervention towards better neurodevelopmental outcomes, specifically for preterm infants below 28 weeks gestational age. EBPCS is defined as the management of the VPIs during the perinatal period which would include antenatal counseling with team briefing and share decision making, treat the chorioamnionitis, antenatal MgS04, antenatal steroid, delayed cord clamping/milking, neonatal resuscitation team preparation, prevention of hypothermia, immediate respiratory support with continuous positive airway pressure at delivery room, less invasive surfactant administration, early surfactant with budesonide therapy, support of cardiovascular system, early initiate of probiotics administration, early caffeine, early parenteral and enteral nutrition, promptly initiating antibiotics. These critical strategies will be discussed detail in the text; nonetheless, standardized protocols, technical skills and repeated training are the cornerstones of successful of EBPCS. Further experience from different NICU is needed to prove whether these very complicate and comprehensive perinatal critical strategies could translate into daily practice to mitigate the incidence of NDI in high-risk VPIs.

Association of Neonatal Hypothermia with Morbidity and Mortality in a Tertiary Hospital in Malawi

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate associations with neonatal hypothermia in a tertiary-level neonatal unit (NU) in Malawi.

METHODS

Neonates with a birth weight >1000 g were recruited and temperatures were recorded 5 min after birth, on admission and 4 h thereafter. Clinical course and outcome were reviewed. Data were analysed using Stata v.15 and p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

Between August 2018 to March 2019, 120 neonates were enrolled, and 112 were included in the data analysis. Hypothermia at 5 min after birth was noted in 74%, 77% on admission to the NU and 38% at 24 h. Neonates who had hypothermia 5 min after birth were more likely to have hypothermia on admission to the NU compared with normothermic subjects (p < 0.01). All neonates with hypothermia on admission to the NU died (100 vs.72%, p = 0.02), but hypothermia at 5 min nor at 24 h were not associated with mortality. After adjusting for potential confounders, the odds ratio of hypothermia at 5 min for hypothermia on admission to NU was 13.31 (95% CI 4.17-42.54).

DISCUSSION

A large proportion of hospitalized neonates is hypothermic on admission and has associated morbidity and mortality. Our findings suggest that a strong predictor of mortality is neonatal hypothermia on admission to the NU, and that early intervention in the immediate period after delivery could decrease the incidence of hypothermia and reduce associated morbidity and mortality.

Admission hypothermia, neonatal morbidity, and mortality: evaluation of a multicenter cohort of very low birth weight preterm infants according to relative performance of the center

This prospective cohort study aimed to assess the association of admission hypothermia (AH) with death and/or major neonatal morbidities among very low birth weight (VLBW) preterm infants based on the relative performance of 20 centers of the Brazilian Network of Neonatal Research. This is a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data using the database registry of the Brazilian Network on Neonatal Research. Center performance was defined by the relative mortality rate using conditional inference trees. A total of 4356 inborn singleton VLBW preterm infants born between January 2013 and December 2016 without malformations were included in this study. The centers were divided into two groups: G1 (with lower mortality rate) and G2 (with higher mortality rate). Crude and adjusted relative risks (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were estimated by simple and multiple log-binomial regression models. An AH rate of 53.7% (19.8-93.3%) was significantly associated with early neonatal death in G1 (adjusted RR 1.41, 95% CI 1.09-1.84) and G2 (adjusted RR 1.29, 95%CI 1.01-1.65) and with in-hospital death in G1 (adjusted RR 1.29, 95%CI 1.07-1.58). AH was significantly associated with a lower frequency of necrotizing enterocolitis (adjusted RR 0.58, 95%CI 38-0.88) in G2.Conclusion: AH significantly associated with early neonatal death regardless of the hospital performance. In G2, an unexpected protective association between AH and necrotizing enterocolitis was found, whereas the other morbidities assessed were not significantly associated with AH. What is Known: • Admission hypothermia is associated with early neonatal death. • The association of admission hypothermia with major neonatal morbidities has not been fully established. What is New: • Admission hypothermia was significantly associated with early neonatal and in-hospital death in centers with the lowest relative mortality rates. • Admission hypothermia was not associated with major neonatal morbidities and with in-hospital death but was found to be a protective factor against necrotizing colitis in centers with the highest relative mortality rates.

Antecedents and outcomes of hypothermia at admission to the neonatal intensive care unit

Objective: To evaluate the association between morbidities preceding and following neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission with hypothermia.Study design: NICU admission temperatures for 1271 infants admitted to the NICU at Tufts Medical Center (TMC) between 2012 and 2015 were compared to all Vermont Oxford Network (VON) centers in 2014. We analyzed demographic data, prevalence of hypothermia, and associations with prenatal and neonatal morbidities.Result: Prevalence of hypothermia at TMC was 19% compared to 25% in the VON. We found a significant association between hypothermia and maternal race, birth weight, gestational age, antenatal steroids, chorioamnionitis, mode of delivery, and Apgar scores.Conclusion: Continued emphasis should be placed on avoiding neonatal hypothermia during the first hours of postnatal life.

Sudden vs Pressure Wean From Nasal Continuous Positive Airway Pressure in Infants Born Before 32 Weeks of Gestation: A Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE

Nasal continuous positive airway pressure (nCPAP) is a well-established treatment of respiratory distress syndrome in preterm infants. Suboptimal weaning from nCPAP may be associated with lung injury, pulmonary morbidity, and infant weight gain. To our knowledge, the best weaning strategy from nCPAP is unknown.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the effect of sudden wean and pressure wean from nCPAP in very preterm infants.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

A randomized, clinical, open-label, multicenter trial was conducted at 6 neonatal intensive care units in Denmark from September 2012 to December 2016 and included infants born before 32 weeks of gestation.

INTERVENTIONS

Sudden wean with discontinuation of nCPAP without a prior reduction in pressure. Pressure wean with gradual pressure reduction prior to the discontinuation of nCPAP.

MAIN OUTCOME AND MEASURES

The primary outcome was weight gain velocity from randomization to postmenstrual age 40 weeks. Secondary outcomes included other measures of growth, nCPAP and the duration of oxygen supplementation, postmenstrual age at successful wean and at discharge, successful wean at the first attempt, the number of attempts to wean, and the length of the hospital stay. Prespecified subgroup analyses by gestational age were performed.

RESULTS

Of the 372 randomized infants, 185 (49.7%) were randomized to sudden wean and 187 infants (50.3%) to pressure wean. A total of 177 infants in both groups completed the trial (median gestational age for sudden and pressure wean, 30 weeks [interquartile range, 29-31]; male: sudden wean, 89 [50%]; pressure wean, 96 [54%]). There was no difference in mean [SD] weight gain velocity from randomization to 40 weeks postmenstrual age between the 2 groups (22 [6] g/kg/day). No difference was found in any of the secondary outcomes. More infants born before 28 weeks of gestation were successfully weaned from nCPAP during the first attempt in the pressure wean group compared with the sudden wean group (risk difference, 31%; 95% CI, 13%-50%), but there was no difference in the duration of nCPAP and oxygen supplementation.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

Overall, we found no difference in weight gain velocity or any of the secondary outcomes between very preterm infants who were randomized to sudden wean or pressure wean from nCPAP. However, among infants born before 28 weeks' gestation, infants from the pressure wean group were more often successfully weaned during the first attempt without a longer total duration of nCPAP treatment.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01721629.