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Another outcome of neonatal intensive care: First year mortality and hospital morbidity
Author(s) -
NIVEN G. R.,
HARDING J. E.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1754.1995.tb00763.x
Subject(s) - medicine , neonatal intensive care unit , intensive care , pediatrics , odds ratio , low birth weight , confidence interval , cohort study , emergency medicine , intensive care medicine , pregnancy , biology , genetics
Objectives: To determine first year mortality and hospital morbidity after neonatal intensive care. Methodology: Cohort study of 6077 surviving infants inborn in one regional hospital in 1988. Nine hundred and eighty‐eight received neonatal intensive care and 103 were very low birthweight (VLBW). Results For infants who required care in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), the relative risk of dying before their first birthday was 3.6 (95% confidence intervals [Cl] 1.5‐8.8). This increased risk was associated with low birthweight (LBW) rather than requirement for NICU care. Of all inborn survivors, 10.4% were readmitted to hospital in the first year and 2.4% more than once. The readmission rate was 20% for NICU survivors and 30% for VLBW infants. The risk of hospitalization was independently associated both with NICU admission (odds ratio 2.3, Cl 1.9‐2.9) and with VLBW (OR 1.8, Cl 1.1‐3.0). The NICU survivors also had multiple admissions and prolonged hospital stays. Conclusions Both low birthweight and neonatal illness requiring intensive care are important indicators of continuing medical vulnerability over the first year of life.