Neonatal bacteremia: risk factors and diagnosis using bactec system

ABSTRACT

Neonatal bacteremia is a low incidence, high-risk disease with many sepsis work-ups performed to detect a single case. Seventy-two hours of antibiotic therapy have been traditionally recommended pending negative culture results. Improved culture media and new technology integrated into blood culture systems could shorten incubation time required to detect positive culture results. This would then change the length of antibiotic therapy in the management of the newborn infant with suspected sepsis. Blood samples from 150 newborn infants with suspected sepsis were tested to evaluate the time of incubation to detect positive blood culture using BACTEC 9050 [Becton Dickinson, Sparks, Md.]. The vast majority [64%] of infections were caused by Gram-positive Staph. "CONS" were the most common late-onset pathogens. The risk of infection increased in patients with increasing duration of ventilator support. So; successful interventions should improve survival, shorten mechanical ventilation and hospital stay, decrease antibiotic usage, and reduce the high cost of caring for very low birth weight [VLBW] infants