Abstract

FRANCO ARGOTE, Osmany  and  ALINO SANTIAGO, Miriam. Neonatal infection: behavior in an intensive care unit. Rev Cubana Pediatr [online]. 2010, vol.82, n.4, pp.52-61. ISSN 0034-7531.

INTRODUCTION. The aim of present study was to characterize the newborns presenting with sepsis seen in the neonatal intensive services of the "America Arias" Gynecology and Obstetrics Hospital for 2 years. METHODS. A quantitative, observational, descriptive and retrospective research was carried out. Universe included 214 neonates. Study variables were: neonatal conditions, clinical sepsis manifestations, severity, humoral alterations and a history of intervention procedures. Some variables were combined founding the p-value to comparison in neonates with non-severe or with severe sepsis. RESULTS. In study group the prematurity, low birth weight and retarded intrauterine growth achieved a 49.1%, 42,1% and 18,7%, respectively. The 72.9% of patients had severe sepsis. The commonest clinical manifestations were the tachypnea (69.2%) and a slow capillary filling (57.9%). The more frequent humoral alteration was the metabolic acidosis (63.6%) and the umbilical catheterization was the commonest intervention procedure (21.5%), metabolic acidosis and neutrophilia and respiratory assistance with umbilical catheterization (21 % or epicutaneous (20.6%). The p-value was of 0.001 among patients with non-severe sepsis and the patients with severe sepsis in all combinations of intervention and non-significant in the combination of low birth weight-retarded intrauterine growth (IURG). CONCLUSIONS. There was predominance of prematurity, severe sepsis, tachypnea, umbilical catheterization and metabolic acidosis. The differences among the patients with non-severe sepsis and those with severe sepsis were significant in all the intervention combinations and of neonatal condition, but not in the combination of low birth weight-IURG.

Keywords : Neonatal sepsis; systemic inflammatory response syndrome; organ multiple dysfunction syndrome; severe sepsis; newborn.

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