Genetic analysis of unexplained neonatal encephalopathy / 中华围产医学杂志

Objective:To explore the potential genetic causes of unexplained neonatal encephalopathy.Methods:This retrospective study enrolled 113 infants diagnosed with unexplained neonatal encephalopathy and underwent genetic testing in the Children's Hospital of Hunan Province from January 2019 to May 2021. Perinatal data, clinical manifestations, electroencephalograph, brain MRI findings, genetic information, and prognosis of those patients were analyzed. T-test or Chi-square test were used for data analysis. Results:Of the 113 infants enrolled, 74 (65.5%) were males. The gestational age at birth was (38.6±1.5) weeks, and the birth weight was (2 957±561) g. The most common clinical manifestation was the disturbance of consciousness (83/113, 73.5%), followed by seizures (39/113, 34.5%). There were 38.2% (34/89) of the patients with abnormal brain MRI, and 80.4% (74/92) presented abnormal electroencephalography. Among the 113 infants, 60 (53.1%) had genetic abnormalities, including 48 with single nucleotide variations, eight with copy number variations, and four with chromosome abnormalities. Single nucleotide variations in the 48 patients were classified into syndromic ( n=18, 37.5%), metabolic ( n=16, 33.3%), epileptic ( n=11, 22.9%) and mitochondrial-related genes ( n=3, 6.3%), of which 14 were not included in any database. Among the 103 cases which were successfully followed up until December 31, 2021, 75 (72.8%) had a poor prognosis, including 52 (50.5%) death cases and 23 (22.3%) cases of development retardation. Birth weight and the incidence of seizures in the poor prognosis group were both lower than those in the non-poor prognosis group [(2 876±536) vs (3 254±554) g, t=3.15; 29.3% (22/75) vs 53.6% (15/28), χ2=5.20; both P<0.05], while the incidence of disturbance of consciousness was higher [80.0% (60/75) vs 53.6% (15/28), χ2=7.19, P<0.05]. The proportion of infants with genetic abnormalities in the poor prognosis group was higher than that in the non-poor prognosis group, but the difference was not statistically significant [53.3% (40/75) vs 46.4% (13/28), χ2=0.39, P=0.533]. Conclusions:Genetic abnormality is one of the leading causes of unexplained neonatal encephalopathy. Nucleotide variation is the most common genetic type. Syndromic, metabolic, and epileptic variants are frequently detected in these patients.

Clinical analysis of 172 cases of neonatal death after giving up treatment / 中国医师杂志

Objective:To summarize the situation of dead newborns and their parents after parents gave up treatment, and analyze the reasons and emotional needs of parents who gave up treatment, so as to provide reference for reducing neonatal mortality and negative emotions of parents.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted to collect the data of neonates and mothers who died after giving up treatment reported in Hunan Children′s Hospital from January 2019 to December 2021. The general information, perinatal risk factors, and the incidence of in-hospital diseases were analyzed. Then, semi-structured interviews were conducted with parents of newborns who died after giving up treatment from February to December 2021. Understand why parents give up treatment and their emotional needs.Results:A total of 172 newborns died after giving up were included in the analysis, including 103 males (59.88%) and 74 premature infants (43.02%); Umbilical cord, placenta and amniotic fluid abnormalities were 21 cases (12.21%), 39 cases (22.67%) and 25 cases (14.53%), respectively. Birth asphyxia was 31 cases (18.02%), including severe asphyxia in 18 cases (10.46%); There were 21 (12.21%), 35 (20.35%) and 30 (17.44%) cases of maternal infection in the third trimester, hypertension in pregnancy and diabetes in pregnancy, respectively. The top three causes of death were septicemia (18.02%), congenital malformation (16.86%) and severe pneumonia (10.47%). The main reason why parents give up treatment was that the child′s disease was critical and irreversible, and parents had strong emotional needs for hospice care in their hearts.Conclusions:There are many high risk factors of perinatal death of newborns after giving up treatment. Sepsis is the primary cause of death, and strengthening perinatal health care is fundamental. Parents have a strong demand for hospice care, so it is of practical significance to implement family-centered hospice care model for such special newborns.

Risk factors and prognosis of pulmonary hypertension associated with bronchopulmonary dysplasia in extremely preterm infants / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective:To study the risk factors and prognosis of pulmonary hypertension(PH) associated with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in extremely preterm infants(EPIs).Methods:From January 2020 to December 2021, EPIs [gestational age (GA) <32 w] with BPD admitted to NICU of our hospital were retrospectively assigned into two groups: BPD with late-onset PH(PH group) and BPD without late-onset PH(non-PH group). Their general condition, treatment and prognosis were compared and the risk factors of late-onset PH were analyzed.Results:A total of 229 EPIs with BPD were enrolled, including 24(10.5%) in the PH group and 205(89.5%) in the non-PH group. The PH group had significantly smaller GA [(27.9±2.3) w vs. (28.7±1.8) w], longer mechanical ventilation [42.0(16.0, 84.0) d vs. 9.0(2.0, 23.0) d], longer hospital stay [100.5(86.3, 142.0) d vs. 77.0(56.5, 96.5)d],higher incidence of early-onset PH(54.2% vs. 9.3%) and higher mortality rate(33.3% vs. 9.8%) than the non-PH group ( P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed prolonged mechanical ventilation ( OR=1.046, 95% CI 1.011~1.064), early-onset PH ( OR=5.414, 95% CI 1.796~16.323) were independent risk factors for BPD with late-onset PH. 8(33.3%) patients in the PH group died, including 2 with grade Ⅱ BPD and 6 grade Ⅲ BPD. Conclusions:Prolonged mechanical ventilation and early-onset PH are independent risk factors for late-onset PH in BPD infants. BPD infants with late-onset PH have longer hospital stay, higher mortality and worse prognosis.

Neonatal ureaplasma meningitis: a report of 2 cases and literature review / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective:To study the clinical features and treatment strategy of neonatal ureaplasma meningitis.Methods:During 2021, the clinical data of 2 neonates with ureaplasma meningitis treated in Children's Hospital of Hunan Province were retrospectively analyzed. Literature on this subject were searched in the following databases: CNKI, Wanfang Database, Chinese Medical Journal Full-Text Database, CQVIP database, SinoMed, PubMed, Embase and Web of Science (up to March 2022). The key words included “infant”, “neonate”, “newborn”, “ureaplasma”, “mycoplasma urealytium”, “meningitis”, “central nervous system infection”, “brain”. The clinical data, treatment and prognosis of patients from the literature were summarized.Results:Case 1, female, gestational age(GA) 33 +3 weeks, intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) and ventricular dilatation were found on 2 d after birth. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) routine and biochemistry tests indicated meningitis, but the CSF culture was negative. No improvement after antibiotic treatment. CSF metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) and 23S rRNA showed Ureaplasma urealyticum on 30 d after birth. The patient was treated with doxycycline (DOX) for 21 d until mNGS turned negative and DOX was discontinued. However, the disease recurred 23 d later and erythromycin was added with DOX as combined therapy. The patient was followed up until 6 months without neurodevelopmental disabilities. Case 2, male, GA 26 weeks, ICH and ventricular dilatation were found on 10 d after birth. The CSF routine and biochemistry tests indicated meningitis, but the CSF culture was negative. No improvement after antibiotic treatment. CSF mNGS and 23S rRNA showed Ureaplasma parvum. The patient received erythromycin therapy for 32 d and had normal neurodevelopment at 5 months. According to the literature, 43 cases were reported including the 2 cases descirbed above, 17 cases were full-term infants and 26 cases were preterm infants. The median CSF leukocytes, glucose and proteins were 566 cells/mm 3, 0.2 mmol/L and 2.2 g/L. 27 cases were diagnosed based on CSF culture, 6 cases using mNGS, 4 cases with both CSF culture and PCR method and 6 cases with other methods. Macrolides alone were used in 14 cases, macrolides combined with another antibiotic were used in 8 cases, non-macrolide antibiotics were used in 9 cases and 12 cases didn't receive any anti-ureaplasma therapy. All 17 term infants survived, however, 8 cases with hydrocephalus. Among the 26 preterm infants, 8 patients died, 18 patients had periventricular-intraventricular hemorrhage and 15 patients had hydrocephalus. Conclusions:Neonatal ureaplasma meningitis has significantly lower CSF glucose level with hydrocephalus as the common complication. For intracranial infections of unknown etiology and no response to treatment, mNGS is helpful in determining the pathogen.Neonatal ureaplasma meningitis should be treated with macrolides alone or as add-on therapy.

Primary research between intestinal flora and late-onset sepsis in premature infants / 中国医师杂志

Objective:To compare the characteristics and differences of intestinal flora in premature infants with late-onset sepsis (LOS) and pneumonia by high-throughput sequencing technology, and to investigate the relationship between intestinal flora and LOS.Methods:Through the case-control method, premature infants with late-onset sepsis who were hospitalized in the neonatal department of Hunan Children′s Hospital from August 2018 to October 2019 were selected as the case group ( n=8). At the same time, premature infants diagnosed with pneumonia were selected as the control group ( n=8). The fecal samples of 16 premature infants were collected for the first time, and the DNA was extracted. The DNA of the target region was amplified by polymerase chain reaction(PCR). High-throughput sequencing was performed using NovaSeq 6000 platform to analyze the composition and diversity of intestinal flora between the two groups. Results:(1) Alpha diversity analysis showed that there was no significant difference in the richness and diversity of intestinal flora between the two groups(all P>0.05). (2) The intestinal flora in premature infants of LOS group and control group were dominated by Firmicutes and Proteobacteria, and facultative anaerobes such as Enterococcus and Escherichia-Shigella were the dominant flora at the genus level. Metastas statistical analysis showed that there was no statistically significant difference in flora composition between the two groups at the phylum level ( P>0.05). (3) Metastas statistical analysis was carried out at the level of class, order, family, genus, and species. The relative abundance of actinomycetes, digestive streptococcaceae and Clostridium in LOS group was higher than that in pneumonia group, and the difference was statistically significant (all P<0.05). (4) The relative abundance of Staphylococcus in the LOS group was significantly greater than that in the control group, but Metastas statistical analysis showed that there was no statistically significant difference in the relative abundance of staphylococcus between the two groups ( P>0.05). (5) Among the 8 cases of LOS, 3 premature infants had positive blood cultures, namely Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus mitis, and Enterococcus faecalis. Enterococcus faecalis belongs to the genus Enterococcus, and Enterococcus belongs to the dominant genus in the LOS group. Conclusions:Different site infections have effects on intestinal microecology of premature infants. There were differences in intestinal flora composition between premature infants with LOS and premature infants with pneumonia.

The efficacy of systemic hypothermia therapy initiated at different times on neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective:To study the clinical efficacy, safety and prognosis of systemic hypothermia therapy on neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE)initiated at different times after birth.Method:From January 2013 to August 2018, term neonates (within 12 hours after birth) diagnosed with neonatal moderate to severe HIE and received systemic treatment in the neonatal intensive care unit of our hospital were retrospectively included. According to the starting time of hypothermia therapy, the neonates were assigned into three groups: within 6 h after birth (TH1 group), 6~12 h (TH2 group) and conventional treatment group (control group). Their clinical data during perinatal period, hospitalization period and follow-up at 6-month were reviewed. Their clinical and neurodevelopmental outcomes were compared using SPSS 25.0 statistical software.Result:A total of 147 neonates with moderate to severe HIE were enrolled. 111 received 72-hour hypothermia therapy, including 79 in the TH1 group, 32 in the TH2 group and 36 in the control group. The neurobehavioral test scores at 10-day of life in the TH1 group were significantly higher than the control group ( P<0.05). No significant differences existed among the TH2 group, the TH1 group and the control group ( P>0.05). The brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed injuries in the TH1 group and the TH2 group were significantly milder than the control group ( P<0.05). No significant differences of brain injuries existed between TH1 group and TH2 group ( P>0.05). 100 patients completed Bailey Infant Intelligence Development Scale at 6-month follow-up. 21 had abnormal scores. No statistically significant differences existed in the psychomotor development index (PDI) scores among the three groups ( P>0.05). TH1 and TH2 groups had significantly fewer cases with mental development index (MDI) <70 points than the control group ( P<0.05). No statistically significant differences existed of MDI scores between the TH1 group and the TH2 group ( P>0.05). No statistically significant differences existed of PDI scores among the 3 groups ( P>0.05). At 6-month, the mortality rate of the control group (32.1%, 9/28) was significantly higher than the TH1 group (6.6%, 4/61) ( P<0.05). No significant differences existed of mortality rate at 6-month among the TH2 group, the TH1 group and the control group ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Systemic hypothermia therapy for neonatal HIE is safe. Starting systemic hypothermia therapy at 6~12-hour after birth may also be effective in reducing mortality rate and improving neurodevelopmental outcome.

Progress in diagnosis and treatment of fungal infection in premature infants / 中国医师杂志

Due to low autoimmune function, imperfect development of various organs, coupled with a variety of invasive operations and other factors, premature infants are high-risk groups of invasive fungal infection.Invasive candida infection in premature infants accounts for more than 80% of invasive fungal infection. The main infection rate of invasive candida albicans was candida albicans. However, in recent years, the infection rate of non-candida albicans such as candida albicans, tropical candida, smooth candida and other non-candida albicans showed a gradual upward trend.In addition to blood culture, the latest diagnostic methods such as plasma (1-3)-β-D-glucan test and candida polymerase chain reaction are helpful for the diagnosis of invasive fungal infection. At the same time, attention should also be paid to prophylactic antifungal therapy and empirical antifungal therapy in premature infants.

Risk factors of severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia in extremely low birth weight infants / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective To study the occurrence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants and to determine the risk factors of severe BPD.Method From January 2007 to January 2017,ELBW infants admitted to neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in Hunan Children's Hospital were retrospectively analyzed.They were assigned into severe and mild/moderate groups based on the severity of BPD.The general condition,maternal status,prenatal and delivery room treatment,transportation,clinical courses,therapy and outcome in NICU of the two groups were compared,and the risk factors of severe BPD were analyzed.Result A total of 367 cases were hospitalized during the 10 years.281 ELBW infants with complete medical records survived longer than 28 days were enrolled in this study.Among them,233 had BPD.Among BPD infants,116 cases were in the severe BPD group,47 cases (40.5％) died.117 cases were in the mild/moderate BPD group and 1 case (0.9％) died.The difference between the two groups was statistically significant (P ＜ 0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that the risk factors of severe BPD were duration of mechanical ventilation ≥ 7 days (OR =7.518,95 ％ CI 3.197 ～ 17.676),ventilator-associated pneumonia (OR =3.047,95 ％ CI 1.436 ～ 6.464),1 min Apgar score ≤7 (OR =2.341,95 ％ CI 1.142 ～ 4.796) and patent ductus arteriosus (OR =2.223,95 ％ CI 1.079 ～4.582).Conclusion The incidence and mortality of BPD,especially severe BPD,are high in ELBW infants.Avoiding asphyxia,shortening the time of mechanical ventilation,preventing infection and closing ductus arteriosus are important measures to reduce the severity of BPD.

The study of extremely low and very low birth weight infant transport risk assessment and factors that influenced deaths / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective To study the transport risk and factors that influence deaths of very low birth weight (VLBW) and extremely low birth weight (ELBW) infants.Method All infants transferred to our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) by our hospital transport team or local hospital transport team from January 2014 to December 2015 were included in our study.Their clinical data were retrospectively studied.The risks of transport between hospitals were analyzed.The risk factors of deaths within and after 7 days of admission were further analyzed by multivariate Logistic regression analysis.The receiver operation characteristic (ROC) curve was used to assess the sensitivity and specificity of mortality index for neonatal transportation (MINT),transport related mortality score (TREMS),transport risk index of physiologic stability (TRIPS) for predicting mortality of preterm infants.Result (1) A total of 527 cases of ELBW/VLBW infants were included in our study.There were no deaths during transport.There were 10.2％ (54/527) died within and 8.9％ (42/473) died after 7 days of hospitalization.(2) Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that scleredema of newborn,secondary transport,gastrointestinal malformations,metabolic acidosis,high TREMS score,and high MINT score were risk factors of mortality within 7 days of admission for ELBW/VLBW infants;necrotizing enterocolitis,intraventricular hemorrhage ≥ three degree,high MINT score and low admission weight were risk factors of mortality after 7 days of admission.(3) The area under the ROC curve for MINT,TREMS,and TRIPS score were 0.672,0.655 and 0.665,respectively.The cut-off values for MINT score (cut-off 8,sensitivity 0.444,specificity 0.829),for TREMS score (cut-off 2,sensitivity 0.500,specificity 0.757,for TRIPS score (cut-off 20,sensitivity 0.444,specificity O.829) were selected to predict mortality within 7 days of admission.Conclusion (1) Secondary transport is the transport-related risk factor of mortality within 7 days of admission for ELBW/VLBW infants.(2) High MINT score is the risk factor of mortality within and after 7 days of admission.(3) If MINT ≥ 8,TREMS ≥2,or TRIPS ≥20,it might significantly increase the risk of mortality of ELBW/ VLBW infants within 7 days of admission after transport.

Research progress of high mobility group box 1 in pediatric diseases / 中国小儿急救医学

High mobility group box 1 protein(HMGB1) is widely present in eukaryotic nuclei and named for its rapid migration during polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Studies have shown that HMGB1 playes an important role in the development of gene transcription,inflammation,cancer and other diseases. In this paper, the biological characteristics of HMGB1 and its research progress in pediatric diseases are reviewed.

Clinical characteristics of fungemia in premature infants / 中国感染控制杂志

Objective To realize the clinical characteristics of fungemia in premature infants.Methods Clinical characteristics of fungemia in premature infants in the intensive care unit of a children''s hospital between January 2011 and December 2015 were analyzed retrospectively, general condition of premature infants, laboratory-related indicators, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing results were compared.Results From January 2011 to December 2015, 42 premature infants with confirmed fungemia were treated in this hospital, 22 (52.38％) of whom were with fungemia caused by Candida albicans(C.albicans), 13 (30.95％) by Candida parapsilosis (C.parapsilosis), 3 by Candida krusei (C.krusei), and 4 by other fungi.Patients were grouped according to the main pathogens causing infection: C.parapsilosis group and C.albicans group.Maternal genitourinary tract infection rate and incidence of fungal meningitis in C.albicans group were both higher than C.parapsilosis group(27.27％ vs 7.69％, 27.27％ vs 0.00％ respectively), peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) rate in C.albicans group was lower than that in C.parapsilosis group(22.73％ vs 69.23％), platelet count in C.parapsilosis group was lower than C.albicans group, differences were all statistically significant (all P<0.05).Conclusion The major fungi causing fungemia in premature infants were C.parapsilosis and C.albicans, maternal reproductive system infection during pregnancy can easily lead to candidemia, premature infants with candidemia are more vulnerable to developing fungal meningitis;PICC is more likely to lead to C.parapsilosis fungemia, and platelet decline is more obvious.

Changes and clinical significances of mitochondrial coupling factor 6 and cytochrome C in neonatal sepsis / 中国小儿急救医学

Objective To evaluate the levels of plasma coupling factor 6(CF6) and cytochrome C(Cyt-c) in neonatal sepsis,and to explore the clinical significance in neonatal sepsis.Methods A total of 88 neonates admitted to Hunan Children's Hospital from January 2015 to April 2015 were collected.Neonates were divided into non-sepsis group(n=42) and sepsis group(n=46).According to the severity of infection,the non-sepsis group was further divided into non-infection group(n=20) and common infection group(n=22);the sepsis group was further divided into general sepsis group (31 cases,no organ failure) and severe sepsis group (15 cases,combined with multiple organ failure).Femoral venous blood was collected in all patients before the use of antibiotics after admission.The levels of Cyt-c and CF6 in plasma were measured by ELISA,and the levels of C-reactive protein(CRP),procalcitonin (PCT) were measured.The changes of CF6 and Cyt-c between these groups were compared,and the sensitivity and specificity with the traditional sepsis index (CRP,PCT) were analyzed.The correlation between the levels of CF6,Cyt-c and neonatal critical illness score was analyzed.Results (1)In sepsis group,the levels of CF6 and Cyt-c[(109.7±8.9)pg/ml and (44.5±4.9)ng/ml] were significantly higher than those in the non-sepsis group[(46.3±6.0)pg/ml,(31.8±6.7)ng/ml,P<0.01,respectively].(2) In the non-infection group,common infection group,general sepsis group and severe sepsis group,the levels of CF6 were (32.1±8.9)pg/ml,(59.3±7.2)pg/ml,(79.3±5.9)pg/ml,and (172.6±6.1)pg/ml,respectively;the levels of Cyt-c were (29.3±8.6)ng/ml,(35.4±4.1) ng/ml,(43.1±5.9) ng/ml,and (44.5±5.9)ng/ml,respectively.The differences between these groups were significant(P<0.01).(3)The receiver operating characteristic curve showed that the sensitivity and specificity of CF6 were 0.761,0.732,and the Cyt-c were 0.739,0.714.(4)Cyt-C and CF6 were negatively correlated with the neonatal critical illness score(r=-0.599,P<0.001;r=-0.337,P<0.01).Conclusion The levels of CF6 and Cyt-c increase in neonatal sepsis.The damage of mitochondria may be one of the pathological mechanisms in neonatal sepsis.The levels of CF6 and Cyt-c were closely related to the severity of neonatal sepsis.

Advances in transporting critical ill neonates / 中国小儿急救医学

In order to understand the status of neonatal transport research at home and abroad,we summarized and analyzed the research progress of neonatal transport through the literature search.Thus we evaluated the current application of a variety of transport critical rating system.Intrauterine transport is considered the safest mode of transport,and promote intrauterine transport of high-risk mothers.It is suggested that the parents participate in the transshipment process and return the stable children to the local hospital for further treatment and promote the family-centered treatment mode.In transit,mobile ECMO,hypothermia and other advanced equipment in foreign countries have been applied.It is recommended to use the respiratory function monitor to monitor the respiration during transit.It can provide the parameters of respiratory wave,identify air leak,accidental release,spontaneous breathing.

Effectiveness of family-integrated-care for preterm infants with moderate to severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective To study the effectiveness of family-integrated-care (FICare) for preterm infants with moderate to severe bronchopuhnonary dysplasia (BPD) in neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).Method Preterm infants with moderate to severe BPD in Hunan Children's Hospital from January 2015 to March 2016 were selected as the objects.These infants were assigned into two groups (FICare group and control group) in the base of whether the parents agreed to implement FICare.If the infant was enrolled into FICare group,the parents need to spend 3 hours in ward every day,and participate in nursing services under the guidance of nurses.The nursing services included bathing,cuddling,skin care,breast-feeding,and so on.If the infant was enrolled into control group,these nursing services were implemented by nurses.Oxygen exposure time,breast-feeding rate,time of begin oral feeding,time of total oral feeding,weight growth rate during hospitalization,weight of discharge,length of stay,readmission rate within 30 days,the rate of parents that mastered basic care knowledge and skills when discharge from hospital,the rate of satisfaction,and the rate of follow-up within 30 days of the two groups were compared.Result There were 106 cases in our study,54 in the FICare group and 52 in the control group.Compare the FICare group and the control group,there were statistical differences between two groups in the follow aspects (all P ＜ 0.05):oxygen exposure time [(57.1 ±20.9) d vs.(71.4 ±32.6) d],breast-feeding rate (77.8％ vs.44.2％),time of total oral feeding [(46.1 4 19.6) d vs.(59.4 ± 30.2) d,length of stay [(65.8 ± 18.4) d vs.(84.3 ±35.0) d],the rate of parents that mastered basic care knowledge and skills when discharge from hospital (96.3％ vs.82.7％),the rate of satisfaction (94.4％ vs.84.6％),the rate of follow-up within 30 days (92.6％ vs.73.1％).Conclusion FICare could significantly reduce oxygen exposure time of preterm infants with moderate to severe BPD,could improve the level of parents mastered basic care knowledge and skills of preterm infants,especially in critically ill preterm children,and could shorten length of stay of them.FICare is beneficial to the healthy growth of premature infants with BPD.

Early growth and development of extremely / very low birth weight infants after discharge / 中华围产医学杂志

Objective To investigate the early growth and development of extremely low birth weight infants (ELBWI) and very low birth weight infants (VLBWI) through a follow-up study from hospital discharge until 18 months of corrected age.Methods ELBWI and VLBWI who were hospitalized and discharged alive from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Hunan Children's Hospital from January 2013 to June 2014 were recruited.Follow-ups were performed at the corrected age of 40 weeks,as well as at one,three,six,12 and 18 months of corrected age.Several parameters indicating the growth and development of those infants were monitored and assessed.Extrauterine growth retardation (EUGR) was defined as head circumference (HC) or weight ≤ 10th percentile for gestational age at discharge.T-,rank-sum,or Chi-square (or Fisher's exact) test was performed for statistical analysis.Results (1) A total of 285 ELBWI and VLBWI were recruited.Among them,145 (50.9％) were alive at last follow-up,37 (13.0％) died,and 103 (36.1％) were lost.No significant differences in clinical data were observed between the infants who completed the follow-up and those who did not (all P＞0.05).(2) Based on HC and weight,the incidences of EUGR in the 145 infants reached the peak at the corrected age of three months [42.8％ (62/145) and 40.0％ (58/145)],and then declined with increasing age.At 18 months of corrected age,the incidences of EUGR dropped to 31.7％ (46/145) and 14.5％ (21/145),respectively.(3) There were no significant differences in gender,gestational age,birth weight,length of hospital stay,duration of oxygen therapy,and incidences of complications between the infants with and without EUGR (allP＞0.05).(4) The rate of pulmonary surfactant therapy in neonates with EUGR was lower than in those without [27.8％ (15/54) vs 53.8％ (49/91),x2=9.340,P＜0.05].There were no significant differences in mental development index and psycho-motor development index at 12 and 18 months of corrected age between the neonates with and without EUGR (all P＞0.05).Neither HC nor weight at the corrected age of 18 months showed significant differences between the two groups (both P＞0.05).(5) At 18 months of corrected age,31.7％ (46/145) of the infants had their HC ≤ 10th percentile,and 14.5％ (21/145) had their weight ≤ 10th percentile.Infants with HC ≤ 10th percentile were at higher risk of abnormal neurodevelopment than those with HC ＞10th percentile [67.4％ (31/45) vs 40.4％ (40/99),X=9.154].Infants with either HC or weight ≤ 10th percentile had higher risk of abnormal neurodevelopment that those with both HC and weight ＞10th percentile [65.5％ (36/55) vs 38.9％ (35/90),x2=9.641] (both P＞0.05).Conclusions ELBWI/VLBWI are at high risk of growth retardation.Incidence of growth restriction declines with age.

Clinical outcome at discharge and its risk factors of extremely preterm infants: a study of 179 cases / 中国新生儿科杂志

Objective To analysis the clinical outcome at discharge and its risk factors of extremely preterm infants.Method To retrospectively analysis the clinical outcome at discharge and it's risk factors of extremely preterm infants (less than 28 weeks gestation) admitted from September 2008 to August 2014 in our Hospital.Result A total of 179 cases were enrolled.Survival rate was 59.2％ (106/179).Unfavorable outcome rate was 74.3％ (133/179),among them 73 cases died.The top five causes of death were severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) (28 cases),Ⅲ ～ Ⅳ o intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) (19 cases),sepsis (16 cases) and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) (6 cases).Among the 60 survivals with unfavorable outcomes,35 cases had either severe neurologic or ophthalmological sequela,and 25 cases had severe pulmonary sequela.Univariate analysis showed that,comparing with improved group,unfavorable outcome group had higher rates of not receiving prenatal steroids,placental abruption,male,small for gestation age,resuscitation with chest compression,admission age older than 72 hour,severe respiratory distress syndrome (RDS),without pulmonary surfactant (PS) usage,mechanical ventilation beyond 2 weeks and sepsis (P ＜ 0.05).Logistic regression analysis showed that those without prenatal steroids (OR =9.402,P =0.002),small for gestational age (OR =8.271,P =0.018),resuscitation with chest compression (OR =6.325,P =0.023),admission age older than 72 hour (OR =4.174,P =0.028) were independent risk factors for unfavorable outcome of extremely premature at discharge.Conclusion Extremely preterm infants have a higher rate of unfavorable outcome at discharge.Avoid small for gestational age,transfer properly and in time both in utero and after birth,and conduct prenatal steroids could improve their clinical outcome at discharge.

High frequency oscillation ventilation treats respiratory distress syndrome of premature / 中国医师杂志

Objective To explore the application of high frequency oscillation in the area of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) of premature.Methods A total of 101 cases with RDS of premature was collected who needed the machine support in neonatal intensive care unite (NICU) during 2010.11.01-2011.10.30.Forty one cases (high frequency oscillation group) received the high frequency oscillation,while 60 cases received the common ventilation (Control Mechanical Ventilation group;control group).The results of blood gas analysis were recorded before ventilation,after ventilation for 2 hours,after ventilation for 12 hours,and after ventilation for 24 hours.The chest X-Ray and the complication were examined.Results The result of the blood-gas before ventilation,after ventilation for 2 hours,after ventilation for 12 hours,and after ventilation for 24 hours,FIO2,PO2,PCO2,and Pa(A-a) were statistically analyzed,and F-value was 16.202,14.764,16.135,8.434,P ＜ 0.01.For chest X-ray in high frequent oscillation group,there were 36 cases who had improved after ventilation 24 hours and all had improved after ventilation 72 hours;however,in common ventilation group,there were 30 cases who had improved after 24 hours and 50 cases had improved after 72 hours,x2 =15.372 and 7.584,P ＜ 0.01,there was statistical difference for two groups.However,there were not different in cerebral injury/healing damage and retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) for two groups.Conclusions High frequency oscillation is an effective way to treat RDS of premature.

Changes of plasma mitochondrial coupling factor -6 and its significance in neonatal sepsis / 中国医师杂志

Objective To investigate the variation of plasma mitochondrial coupling factor -6 and explore the significance in neonatal sepsis.Methods The study of 88 cases of pediatric inpatients in our hospital were divided into non-sepsis group (46 cases)and sepsis group (42 cases).CF-6 concentration in venous blood of all study subjects was determined by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).Re-sults The plasma CF-6 concentrations in peripheral venous blood of the patients with sepsis were signifi-cantly higher than those in non sepsis group(107.65 ±50.38)pg/ml vs (38.96 ±29.87)pg/ml,The con-centrations of CF-6 in the infected group were higher than those in the normal control group(P <0.05). Conclusions The concentration of mitochondrial coupling factor -6 in neonatal sepsis was significantly higher,and has a certain pathological and physiological significance in the pathogenesis of neonatal sepsis.

Correlation of transit time and clinical outcome in 363 cases of premature infants with respiratory failure / 中华实用儿科临床杂志

Objective To investigate the correlation between the transport time of preterm infants with respira-tory failure and the clinical outcome. And to determine the transit time in critically ill premature infants. Methods Premature infants in level Ⅱ neonatal ward in Hunan Province Children's Hospital from January 1 to December 31, 2013,admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit requiring respiratory support(invasive and noninvasive),were re-viewed. All the patients were classified into non - standardized transport group and regulate transport group according to respiratory support that infants in the level Ⅱ neonatal ward required. Data on general information,the time of ventilator application,the time of exposure to oxygen,morbidity of bronchopulmonary dysplasia(BPD),the cure and improvement rate,length of stay,the total length of stay(length of stay in the local hospital and our hospital),and hospitalization ex-penses were collected. Results Among the 363 infants,there were 107 cases in the non - standardized transport group, and 256 cases in the regulate transport group. The time of ventilator application in the non - standardized transport group was longer than that in regulate transport group[(19. 75 ± 19. 53)d vs(13. 02 ± 12. 64)d,t = 18. 706,P ﹤ 0. 05],the time of exposure to oxygen was longer[(30. 60 ±24. 80)d vs(19. 50 ±19. 24)d,t =6. 883,P ﹤0. 05],the morbidity of BPD was higher[57. 01%(61/ 107 cases)vs 18. 36%(47/ 256 cases),χ2 = 53. 934,P ﹤ 0. 05],but the cure and im-provement rate was lower[70. 10%(75/ 107 cases)vs 83. 20%(213/ 256 cases),χ2 = 7. 912,P ﹤ 0. 05],and the total length of stay was longer[(59. 50 ± 34. 02)d vs(34. 48 ± 23. 69)d,t = 22. 967,P ﹤ 0. 05]than that in the regulate group. But there was no significant difference between the length of stay[(43. 99 ±28. 08)d vs(32. 79 ± 23. 76)d,t =2. 012,P ﹥0. 05]in the non - standardized transport group and regulate transport group,with the hospitalization expenses [(6. 55 ±4. 30)vs(4. 99 ±4. 12)thousands yuan,t =0. 552,P ﹥0. 05]. Conclusions The non - standardized transport group has higher morbidity of BPD,but lower cure or improvement rate,and it has longer length of stay. The 2013 edition of Chinese Neonatal Ward Hierarchical Construction and Management Guide(Proposal)is reasonable,level Ⅱ neonatal ward should be in strict accordance with it to transport regional neonatal.

Clinical analysis of 165 extremely low birth weight infants / 中华儿科杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To analyze the clinical features and prognosis of extremely low birth weight infants (ELBWI).</p><p><b>METHOD</b>Data of totally 165 hospitalized ELBWI between August 1st, 2008 and November 30th, 2013 in Hunan Children's Hospital were analyzed. The information of general data and births, prenatal care, delivery room stabilization, transfer information, complications, treatment, outcome and follow up were summarized.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>(1) One hundred and sixty-five ELBWI were involved, their mean gestational age was (28.4±2.4) weeks, mean birth weight(910.9±93.1) g. (2) Rate of delivery in tertiary hospital was 46.7% (77/165) and prenatal steroids exposure was found in 52.1% (86/165). None of the cases were treated with continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) in delivery room. (3) Rate of infants who were transfered to the class III b neonatal ward within 12 hours after birth was 58.8% (97/165). (4) The main complications of them included neonatal respiratory distress syndrome(NRDS, 77.0%, 127/165), bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD, 70.1%, 75/107), patent ductus arteriosus (PDA, 50.0%, 40/80), preterm retinopathy (ROP, 43.0%, 46/107), sepsis 39.4% (65/165), intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH, 34.8%, 49/141), necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC, 8.0%, 7/88). (5) TREATMENT: 97.6% (161/165) received oxygen therapy and 66.1% (109/165) received mechanical ventilation, 55.2% (91/165) used CPAP. 89.8% (114/127) of the NRDS used PS; 44.0% (33/75) of the BPD used low dose dexamethasone, 32.0% (24/75) used low dose nitric oxide; 60.0% (24/40) of the PDA used medication. 32.6% (15/46) of the ROP received laser photocoagulation. The average time of beginning enteral feeding was 2.0 d, the mean time to achieve full gastrointestinal feeding was 43.4 d. (6) OUTCOME: rate of survival in 165 cases with ELBWI was 51.5% (85/165), treatment was abandoned in 37.6% (62/165), total mortality was 48.5% (80/165). There were significant difference in survival rate between different birth weight group, gestational age group and admission age group (χ2=11.498, 8.789, 13.157, all P<0.05); There was significant difference in rate of giving up treatment between different birth weight and admission age groups (χ2=10.448, 8.259, all P<0.05). The primary cause of death was economic factor and worrying about prognosis. (7) Follow up: rate of neurodevelopmental impairment (NDI) in part of follow up cases was 27.9% (12/43).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>ELBWI have many severe complications and sequelae, which need complex treatment and long hospital stay with a low survival rate. In order to improve the level of treatment, we need to improve the rate of prenatal steroids, carry out intrauterine and postnatal, transport of ELBWI to III b neonatal ward as early and rationally as possible, give professional, sophisticated and integrated treatment technologies as far as possible.</p>