Publication:

Neonatal morbidity and mortality in the pediatric ward at the Ambohimiandra Antananarivo Madagascar hospital

Background The 28 firsts days of life have high-risk of diverse aggression. To achieve the goal of ODD3 in reducing preventable neonatal death, our study was to evaluate main pathologies of newborn, newborn’s mortality.

Methods This is a retrospective descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study extending over a period of 8 months, December 2014 to July 2015.

Results We collected 132 newborn, the sex ratio was 1.13. Main newborn’s pathologies are neonatal infection (59.85%). Mortality rate was 14.39% and majority of neonatal death occurs early (73.68% of all deaths). Main causes of death are neonatal infection by septic shock. The most lethal pathology was hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. We have identified as a risk factor for neonatal death: admission age of 24 hours or less (OR 7; 95% CI 2.5-20.10; p = 0.00006), presence of resuscitation at birth (OR 3.48, 95% CI 1.28-9.44, p = 0.01), Apgar index less than 7 at the fifth minute (OR 4.22, 95% CI 2.25-14.87, p = 0.03) and birth weight less than 2500g (OR 3.80, 95% CI 1.39-10.36, p = 0.006).

Conclusions The mortality rate remains high. The prevention of low birth weight, asphyxia and infections has shown strategies to reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality.