Family Medicine & Medical Science Research
Open Access

Abstract

Does Preterm Birth Significantly Associated With Neonatal Sepsis?

Alo Edin*, Abdisa Haro, Enat G. Kiristos, Angefa Ayele, Yimar Hotessa

Background: Neonatal sepsis is a systemic infection that occurs in neonates within the first 28 days of life. Neonatal sepsis has an estimated global burden of 2,202 per 100,000 live births, and it is a major cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality in developing countries. According to the findings, bacteria cause the vast majority of neonatal sepsis. In fact, the Ethiopian ministry of health has made countless efforts to reduce neonatal mortality, among them the community-based newborn care program and the integrated management of neonatal and child illness program. However, there was a scarcity of data on the severity of neonatal sepsis and its predictors in the study area. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate neonatal sepsis and its associated factors.

Methods: Institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted, among neonates admitted to neonatal intensive care unit at public hospitals in Southern Ethiopia, from May 1 to June 30, 2021. A total of 292 subjects (mother-neonate pairs) were selected using a systematic random sampling technique and pre-tested and structured questionnaires were used to collect data. Epi-data version 3.1 was used for data entry and data was exported to SPSS version 25 for further analysis. Multi-variable logistic regression analysis was fitted to identify factors associated with neonatal sepsis. Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with the corresponding 95% Confidence Interval (CI) was used to show the strength of associations and variables with p-values of <0.05 were considered as statistically significant.

Results: Overall prevalence of neonatal sepsis was 83.9% ( 95% CI: (79.2-87). Gestational age <37 weeks (AOR=3.2; 95% CI (1.45, 6.94), being male (AOR=2.2; 95% CI (1.04, 4.44) and birth asphyxia (AOR=3.9; 95% CI (1.02, 14.7) were significantly associated with neonatal sepsis.

Conclusion: The prevalence of neonatal sepsis was high. Gestational age <37 weeks, being male, and neonate diagnosed with birth asphyxia were identified factors for neonatal sepsis. Special attention should be given to preterm neonates, use of partograph to hasten the second stage of labor to prevent birth asphyxia, early detection and prevention of infection should be applied to save neonates.

Published Date: 2025-01-21; Received Date: 2023-08-20