RESUMEN
Intensive care nursery [ICN] survival rates reflect the efficacy of the perinatal management achieved in each institution. It became of great importance to compare outcome data of individual hospitals to international numbers, taking into consideration the dramatic changes in medical care for very-low-birth weight [VLBW] infants and their mothers that occurred during the past decade worldwide. Evaluate the neonatal outcome [mortality and morbidity] of VLBW and premature infants born at Makassed General Hospital [MGH] and admitted to ICN and compare it to the international rates. Detailed data were collected for all VLBW [<1500 g] and /or premature infants [<30 weeks] born at MGH and admitted to ICN from Jan 1, 1991, through May 31, 2002, retrospectively. Three study periods were defined according to the emergence of new treatment modalities, namely antenatal steroid use and surfactant treatment. Outcome measures were the survival rates at day 28 and on discharge. Secondary outcomes were morbidity rates for patents ductus arteriosus, necrotizing enterocolitis, intraventricular hemorrhage, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and nosocomial and maternofetal infections. We studied the effect of antenatal steroids, surfactant, and new respiratory support modes as well as the effect of birth weight, etiology of pre-term labor, mode of delivery, Apgar score, etiology of pre-term labor, mode of delivery, Apgar score, gender, multiple gestation, and intrauterine growth retardation on both survival and morbidity. There were 207 VLBW [