A study of morbidity and mortality profile of neonates in special newborn care unit at tertiary care teaching institute of Jhalawar, Rajasthan

Dr. Bhagawana Ram; Dr.Krishna Chandra Dagal

Volume : IX, Issue : IV, April - 2020

A study of morbidity and mortality profile of neonates in special newborn care unit at tertiary care teaching institute of Jhalawar, Rajasthan

Dr. Bhagawana Ram, Dr. Krishna Chandra Dagal

Abstract :

Background: The accurate data of morbidity and mortality pattern are useful for many reasons. The Perinatal and the neonatal period are so short but they are the most critical faces of human life.1 It reflects the general health and the socio–biological features of the most vulnerable groups of the society, the mothers and the infants. The objectives of this study was to investigate the morbidity and mortality pattern of neonates admitted in Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) of tertiary care hospital. Methods: Retrospective study was carried out at the Special Newborn Care Unit (SNCU), Department of Pediatrics, Jhalawar Medical College, Jhalawar (Rajasthan) admitted in the period between January 2019 to June 2019. Both inborn and outborn admissions were included. Newborns admitted in SCNU were analyzed for causes of morbidity and mortality. Results: Total 2119 neonates were admitted in SNCU during the study period, 117 were excluded from study. 61.4% were Males, 38.6% were Females, 60.2% were inborn, 29.8% were outborn, 69.5% were term babies and 49.8% had normal birth weight. Major causes of morbidity were Neonatal jaundice 598 (29.9%), Perinatal asphyxia 425 (21.2%), Preterm/LBW 462 (16.1%), sepsis 252 (12.6%) and RDS 148 (7.4%). The overall mortality rate was 9.8% with statistical significant difference between inborn (7.3%) and outborn (13.6%) babies (P<0.0001). The major causes of mortality were perinatal asphyxia 67 (34.2%), followed by sepsis 51 (26%), Respiratory distress syndrome 38 (19.4%) and prematurity 23 (11.7%). The survival of term as well as normal birth weight babies was statistically significant over preterm (P<0.0001) and Low Birth Weight (LBW), Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW), Extreme Low Birth Weight (ELBW) neonates (P<0.0001) respectively. Conclusions: Perinatal asphyxia, prematurity, neonatal sepsis and respiratory problems were major causes of both mortality and morbidity. There is need to strengthen services to address these problems more effectively.