Extended Sick Neonate Score (ESNS) for Clinical Assessment and Mortality Prediction in Sick Newborns referred to Tertiary Care

Objective:To evaluate utility of a new Extended Sick Neonate Score (ESNS). to predict ‘in-hospital mortality’ and compare with Score for Neonatal Acute Physiology – PerinatalExtension II (SNAPPE II) and Sick Neonate Score (SNS). Design:Prospective observationalstudy. Methods:All extramural sick newborns transported to the neonatology unit of a tertiarycare teaching hospitalover a period of one year.Correlation between ESNS, SNAPPE-II andSNS scoring, and sensitivity/specificity of each score to predict mortality were determined.Results:961 newborns were enrolled in the study. ESNS, SNAPPE II and SNS were stronglycorrelated, even when stratified by gestation. ESNS of ≤11 had the best sensitivity (85.9%)and specificity (89.8%). For preterms, ESNS ≤12 had the best sensitivity (92.3%) andspecificity (76.7%). Conclusion:ESNS can predict ‘in-hospital mortality’ outcome withsatisfactory sensitivity and specificity