Survival Status, Length of Stay, and Predictors of Mortality Among Neonates Admitted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Gurage Zone Public Hospitals.

Background: Many countries need to accelerate their progress to achieve the sustainable development goal target of neonatal death. It is still high in Ethiopia. Thus, this study aimed to assess the mortality predictors and length of hospital stay among Neonates admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Gurage zone public Hospitals. Method: In this study, a facility-based retrospective follow-up study was applied among 375 neonates admitted to the NICU of selected public hospitals in the Gurage zone from June 1, 2019 to June 30, 2021. The researchers used Epi-Data entry 3.1 for the data entry and then exported it to STATA version 14 for analysis. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve and log-rank test were used to estimate and compare the survival time of categorical variables, respectively. Result: The researchers observed about 85 (22.7% with 95%CI: 18.7, 27.2) deaths from the 2305 person-days follow-up. The median survival time was 14 days. The overall incidence density rate was 36.9 per 1000 person-days observed (95%CI: 29.8, 45.6). Perinatal asphyxia (AHR: 2.9[CI: 1.8; 4.8]), cesarean section as a mode of delivery (AHR: 1.1[CI; 1.01; 1.15]), maternal age of greater or equal to 35 years (AHR: 1.1[95% CI: 1.01, 1.15]), and twin pregnancy (AHR: 2.3[95% CI: 1.2, 4.3]) were predictors of neonatal mortality. Conclusion: The survival rate of neonates was higher compared to other studies. So, to reduce the burden of neonatal mortality, health care providers should give special attention to twin pregnancies, neonates delivered via cesarean section, and neonates with a problem of perinatal asphyxia.

Prevalence and factors associated with neonatal acute respiratory distress syndrome among neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care units of Gurage zone public hospital, South West Ethiopia.

Background: Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is the leading cause of respiratory failure and death of a neonate in today's world, especially in developing countries like Ethiopia. Methods: We used an institutional-based cross-sectional study in the selected hospitals of the Gurage zone admitted from June 2019 to June 2021. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Data were entered into Epi data 3.1 and exported to SPSS version 25 for analysis. Result: The prevalence of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in the study area was 45.1%. The odds of RDS in neonates from mothers with gestational age between 35 &37 were 3.99 times higher compared to term gestation. The odds of RDS among neonates with jaundice and sepsis are 4.33- and 1.92-times higher odds compared to their counterparts. The odds of RDS in neonates born via Caesarean section were 1.7 times higher compared with those delivered via spontaneous and instrumental delivery. RDS was also higher in neonates born to mothers <20 years of age and >=35 years old. Conclusion: the prevalence of RDS in the study area was high. Thus, healthcare providers should act on those factors with appropriate follow-up for early detection of the problem and prevent the risk.