TY - JOUR ID - TI - Preterms in the Neonatal Care Unit at Babylon Maternity and Children Hospital: Prevalence, Morbidity, Mortality, and Risk Factors AU - Rehab Faisal Laftah PY - 2015 VL - 8 IS - 2 SP - 2214 EP - 2221 JO - Karbala Journal of Medicine مجلة كربلاء الطبية SN - 19905483 29580889 AB - background: Prematurity and its complications are the major cause for neonatalmorbidity and mortality. Often, the cause of preterm labor is unknown, but severaletiological risk factors have been identifiedObjective: Regardless the causes for hospitalization, this study was designed to determinethe prevalence, mortality, morbidity (determined by duration of hospitalization and referral topediatric intensive care unit PICU) of preterm baby among patients admitted into the neonatalcare unit, and some of the possible underlying risk factors for preterm births.Method: During a period of seven months from 2 December 2012 to 28 June 2013, anonrandomized sample consisted of 200 neonates that had been admitted into neonatal careunit “NCU” at Babylon Maternity and Children Hospital was involved in this cross sectionaldescriptive study. Same questionnaire was applied for all cases, then patients were dividedinto 2 groups according to gestational age (<37w and ≥37). Test of proportion and chi-squarewere used to determine significant differences between the groups.Results: Prematurity and its complications are responsible for 72/200 (36%) of neonatalhospitalization and 3/6 (50%) of neonatal death. Females constitute 35/72 (48.61%) ofpreterms and 44/138 (34.37%) of terms with p value < 0.05. 8/48 (16.66%) of preterms and7/95 (7.36%) of terms need referral to PICU with p value > 0.05. Regarding hospitalization,preterms had longer duration than term neonates (p value <0.05). 51/187 (27.27%) of neonatehad been discharged on their parents’ responsibility, and 20/51 (39.21%) was preterm.Multiple gestation is a risk factor for death in preterm babies, while obstetrical factors had acorrelation with the occurrence of preterm births (p value <0.05), with premature rupture ofmembrane being at the top of the list.Conclusion: Prematurity and its complications are the major causes for neonatalhospitalization and death and need longer duration of hospitalization than terms. For pretermbirth, females are at greater risk and the presence of obstetrical factors increase itsoccurrence

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