[A descriptive overview of cases of congenital cytomegalovirus at a tertiary hospital between 2017 and 2023]. / Descriptivo de los casos de citomegalovirus congénitos en un hospital terciario entre 2017-2023.

OBJECTIVE: Cytomegalovirus infection (CMV) is the most common congenital infection in developed countries. The aim of our study was to describe the features of the children that have congenital CMV infection at our hospital for the last 6 years. METHODS: A retrospective descriptive study was designed that included all the children with CMV congenital infection that were diagnosed at tertiary hospital of Madrid Community between 2017 and 2023. RESULTS: Twenty-two children were included. 54.5% have a prenatal diagnosis, 50% of them were in the third trimester, 25% at first trimester and 25% at the second. 22.7% were preterm. CMV was isolated in all the samples with CV more than 1000 copies/ml. When CMV was made in blood, 11/22 (50%) had a high CV. Only one newborn had a high CV at CRL. 44% have affectation at transfontanellar ultrasound evidenced by vasculopathy (62%), intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) or periventricular calcifications (20%). 68% were asymptomatic, al though 20% had a retarded intrauterine growth (RIG) at birth or clinical features or analytical were objectified (neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, cholestasis). 33% got treatment with val ganciclovir and 33% had sequelae (hearing loss). CONCLUSIONS: CMV congenital infection is still a severe public health issue in developed countries. Most of the cases are mild or asymptomatic even though we should have high clinical suspicion with compatible symptoms and consistent maternal history in order to make an early diagnosis and treatment to prevent or reduce sequelae.

Cribado universal de infección por citomegalovirus en prematuros de menos de 1.500 g / Universal cytomegalovirus infection screening in premature newborns less than 1500 g

INTRODUCCIÓN: La infección por citomegalovirus es una infección endémica y los niños que acuden a guardería constituyen el foco de infección más importante para las gestantes. OBJETIVO: Establecer una recomendación para el diagnóstico basada en la evidencia médica sobre la infección de trasmisión vertical por citomegalovirus en prematuros menores de 1.500g al nacer. ANTECEDENTES: La infección en la gestante puede ser primaria o secundaria. Aunque exista infección fetal, el 85% de los recién nacidos serán asintomáticos. Los síntomas de infección son: bajo peso al nacer, hepatoesplenomegalia, trombocitopenia, microcefalia y trastornos neurológicos. El pronóstico de los niños sintomáticos suele ser grave, con elevada mortalidad y secuelas neurológicas. El virus se puede reactivar durante la lactancia y es posible la infección precoz a través de la leche materna, probablemente con poca repercusión en niños a término, aunque en prematuros puede afectar al neurodesarrollo a largo plazo. El método diagnóstico de elección es la identificación del citomegalovirus en orina; la determinación en las 2 primeras semanas de vida indica infección congénita. Un diagnóstico posterior sugiere que puede haber sido adquirida en el parto o a través de la leche materna o transfusión de sangre contaminada. Conclusión y recomendación: Determinar el ADN viral por reacción en cadena de la polimerasa a las 4-6 semanas de vida. En caso positivo, investigar en muestras obtenidas los primeros días de vida y en leche materna. Ello debe permitir clasificar al recién nacido en 3 estados: «no infectado», «infección congénita» e «infección adquirida»

INTRODUCTION: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is endemic, and children who attend day care are the most important source of infection. OBJECTIVE: To establish recommendations based on the medical evidence on the vertical transmission of cytomegalovirus in preterm infants weighing less than 1500g at birth. BACKGROUND: Infection in pregnant women may be primary or secondary. Although there is fetal infection, 85% of newborn infants are asymptomatic. Symptoms of infection include low birth weight, hepatosplenomegaly, thrombocytopenia, microcephaly and neurological disorders. The prognosis of symptomatic children is very poor, with high mortality and neurological disorders. The virus can be reactivated during breast feeding, and early infection is possible through breast milk, probably with little impact in term infants, although the long-term neurological outcome worsens in preterm infants. The diagnostic method of choice is the identification of CMV in urine; the determination in the first two weeks of life suggests congenital infection; later it can be acquired at birth or through breast milk or contaminated blood transfusion. Conclusion and recommendation: Determine viral DNA at 4-6 weeks of life by protease chain reaction. If it is positive, monitoring of samples from the first days of life and breast milk are mandatory. This should allow the newborn to be classified into three states: «Without CMV infection», «Congenital CMV infection», «Acquired CMV infection»

[Universal cytomegalovirus infection screening in premature newborns less than 1500 g]. / Cribado universal de infección por citomegalovirus en prematuros de menos de 1.500 g.

INTRODUCTION: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is endemic, and children who attend day care are the most important source of infection. OBJECTIVE: To establish recommendations based on the medical evidence on the vertical transmission of cytomegalovirus in preterm infants weighing less than 1500g at birth. BACKGROUND: Infection in pregnant women may be primary or secondary. Although there is fetal infection, 85% of newborn infants are asymptomatic. Symptoms of infection include low birth weight, hepatosplenomegaly, thrombocytopenia, microcephaly and neurological disorders. The prognosis of symptomatic children is very poor, with high mortality and neurological disorders. The virus can be reactivated during breast feeding, and early infection is possible through breast milk, probably with little impact in term infants, although the long-term neurological outcome worsens in preterm infants. The diagnostic method of choice is the identification of CMV in urine; the determination in the first two weeks of life suggests congenital infection; later it can be acquired at birth or through breast milk or contaminated blood transfusion. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: Determine viral DNA at 4-6 weeks of life by protease chain reaction. If it is positive, monitoring of samples from the first days of life and breast milk are mandatory. This should allow the newborn to be classified into three states: "Without CMV infection", "Congenital CMV infection", "Acquired CMV infection".

Displasia broncopulmonar: definiciones y clasificación / Bronchopulmonary dysplasia: definitions and classifications

La displasia broncopulmonar sigue siendo la secuela más frecuente relacionada con los recién nacidos de muy bajo peso al nacer y especialmente con aquellos con pesos extremadamente bajos. Pese a los avances en la prevención y los cuidados de la insuficiencia respiratoria asociada a la prematuridad, no ha ocurrido un descenso en su incidencia en esta población, aunque sí hemos asistido en los últimos años a un cambio en su expresión clínica y en su gravedad. Existen, sin embargo, diferencias aún importantes entre los distintos centros en cuanto a la frecuencia de su presentación, probablemente debido a la aplicación de un diagnóstico clínico no homogéneo. En este artículo, la Comisión de Estándares de la Sociedad Española de Neonatología quiere revisar los criterios diagnósticos de la displasia broncopulmonar para reducir, en la medida de lo posible, la variabilidad intercentro de la misma (AU)

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is the most common sequelae related to very low birth weight infants, mostly with those of extremely low birth weight. Even with advances in prevention and treatment of respiratory distress syndrome associated with prematurity, there is still no decrease in the incidence in this population, although a change in its clinical expression and severity has been observed. There are, however, differences in its frequency between health centres, probably due to a non-homogeneously used clinical definition. In this article, the Committee of Standards of the Spanish Society of Neonatology wishes to review the current diagnosis criteria of bronchopulmonary dysplasia to reduce, as much as possible, these intercentre differences (AU)

Recomendaciones sobre transporte neonatal / Recommendations for neonatal transport

Las gestaciones que conllevan algún riesgo materno y/o fetal no siempre son diagnosticadas en un centro especializado en la atención neonatal, por lo que el transporte posnatal es una parte esencial dentro de la estructura de los servicios sanitarios perinatales. El objetivo del transporte neonatal es trasladar al recién nacido a un centro especializado que disponga de la infraestructura y la experiencia necesarias para su asesoramiento y tratamiento. El transporte ideal del recién nacido es el que se realiza in utero. Desafortunadamente, no todos los problemas pueden detectarse a tiempo para el traslado materno y hasta un 30-50% de ellos pueden presentarse durante el parto o en el periodo neonatal inmediato. Por ello es necesario disponer de conocimientos y medios para la reanimación y la estabilización del recién nacido en el momento del parto y de un sistema de transporte neonatal especializado que permita trasladar a los pacientes con el mismo nivel de cuidados que recibiría en el hospital receptor sin que suponga en ningún caso un deterioro de su salud o un riesgo elevado para ella. La Sociedad Española de Neonatología, a través de su Comisión de Estándares, ha querido revisar y actualizar en este documento las recomendaciones para el transporte intraútero, las indicaciones para el traslado neonatal, la organización y la logística necesarias para realizarlo (personal, comunicación, documentación, medio de transporte y equipamiento), la estabilización previa al mismo, el manejo durante el traslado y el ingreso en el hospital receptor (AU)

During pregnancy, it is not always possible to identify maternal or foetal risk factors. Infants requiring specialised medical care are not always born in centres providing intensive care and will need to be transferred to a referral centre where intensive care can be provided. Therefore Neonatal Transport needs to be considered as part of the organisation of perinatal health care. The aim of Neonatal Transport is to transfer a newborn infant requiring intensive care to a centre where specialised resources and experience can be provided for the appropriate assessment and continuing treatment of a sick newborn infant. Intrauterine transfer is the ideal mode of transport when the birth of an infant with risk factors is diagnosed. Unfortunately, not all problems can be detected in advance with enough time to safely transfer a pregnant woman. Around 30- 50% of risk factors will be diagnosed during labour or soon after birth. Therefore, it is important to have the knowledge and resources to resuscitate and stabilise a newborn infant, as well as a specialised neonatal transport system. With this specialised transport it is possible to transfer newly born infants with the same level of care that they would receive if they had been born in a referral hospital, without increasing their risks or affecting the wellbeing of the newborn. The Standards Committee of the Spanish Society of Neonatology reviewed and updated recommendations for intrauterine transport and indications for neonatal transfer. They also reviewed organisational and logistic factors involved with performing neonatal transport. The Committee review included the type of personnel who should be involved; communication between referral and receiving hospitals; documentation; mode of transport; equipment to stabilise newly born infants; management during transfer, and admission at the referral hospital (AU)

Niveles asistenciales y recomendaciones de mínimos para la atención neonatal / Health care levels and minimum recommendations for neonatal care

En el año 2004 fue elaborado por el Comité de Estándares y la Junta Directiva de la Sociedad Española de Neonatología (SEN) un primer documento sobre niveles asistenciales y recomendaciones de mínimos para la atención neonatal, a partir del cual se pudo definir el nivel asistencial de cada centro en nuestro país, así como los requerimientos técnico-sanitarios según niveles. La presente revisión pretende tener en cuenta los cambios experimentados en la asistencia neonatal en los últimos años y optimizar la localización de recursos. Las unidades que proporcionan asistencia a los recién nacidos deben estar organizadas dentro de un sistema de regionalización de los cuidados perinatales. Las características funcionales de cada nivel asistencial deben ser definidas de forma uniforme y clara, y esto incluye requerimientos de equipamiento, instalaciones, personal, servicios de apoyo, formación y organización de servicios (incluyendo el transporte) necesarios para cubrir las prestaciones de cada nivel de cuidados (AU)

A policy statement on the levels of care and minimum recommendations for neonatal healthcare was first proposed by the Standards Committee and the Board of the Spanish Society of Neonatology in 2004. This allowed us to define the level of care of each center in our country, as well as the health and technical requirements by levels of care to be defined. This review takes into account changes in neonatal care in the last few years and to optimize the location of resources. Facilities that provide care for newborn infants should be organized within a regionalized system of perinatal care. The functional capabilities of each level of care should be defined clearly and uniformly, including requirements for equipment, facilities, personnel, ancillary services, training, and the organization of services (including transport) needed to cover each level of care (AU)

Recomendaciones para la informatización de los servicios de neonatología / Recommendations for the computerisation of neonatology services

El objetivo es proporcionar el marco para la recopilación de datos en el área de la salud de los recién nacidos que permitan la armonización de la asistencia sea cual sea su lugar de nacimiento. Para ello es necesario conocer la población atendida y la mayor dificultad es la ausencia de un sistema de recopilación de datos y de unos estándares asistenciales para todas las condiciones del recién nacido. Es imprescindible disponer de un registro único en el que se recojan los principales datos perinatales y neonatales de todos los recién nacidos. La Sociedad Española de Neonatología (SEN) debe ser el depositario y responsable de la base de datos, que debe cumplir todas las exigencias legales de privacidad y confidencialidad. A nivel de cada centro es posible conocer el peso relativo de la afección atendida por grupos de diagnósticos relacionados (DRG) y los resultados desde el aspecto de calidad asistencial. Mediante análisis comparativos (estudios de benchmarking,...) es posible establecer las pautas de diagnóstico y tratamiento.Es necesario conocer la población de recién nacidos atendida y definir criterios de diagnóstico y tratamiento para mejorar la calidad asistencial. La SEN desea dirigirse a los responsables asistenciales de los centros hospitalarios para pedirles su apoyo y colaboración en la puesta en marcha de estas recomendaciones (AU)

The aim is to provide a framework for data collection in the health area of newborn infants allowing harmonization of their care. This requires knowing the population served, and the greatest difficulty is the absence of a data collection system and standards of care for all conditions of the newborn infant. It is essential to have a single record with the main perinatal and neonatal data of all newborn infants. The Spanish Society of Neonatology (SEN) should be responsible for the database, which must meet all legal requirements of privacy and confidentiality. It is possible to determine the relative weight of the pathology treated using Diagnostic Related Groups (DRG) and the results from a quality care perspective. Guidelines for diagnosis and treatment may be established by comparative analysis (benchmarking studies…).Conclusion and Recommendation. It is necessary to know the newborn population served, and define criteria for diagnosis and treatment to improve quality of care. The SEN wishes to address those responsible for the care in hospitals, and to ask for their support and cooperation in the implementation of these recommendations(AU)

[Bronchopulmonary dysplasia: definitions and classifications]. / Displasia broncopulmonar: definiciones y clasificación.

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is the most common sequelae related to very low birth weight infants, mostly with those of extremely low birth weight. Even with advances in prevention and treatment of respiratory distress syndrome associated with prematurity, there is still no decrease in the incidence in this population, although a change in its clinical expression and severity has been observed. There are, however, differences in its frequency between health centres, probably due to a non-homogeneously used clinical definition. In this article, the Committee of Standards of the Spanish Society of Neonatology wishes to review the current diagnosis criteria of bronchopulmonary dysplasia to reduce, as much as possible, these inter-centre differences.

[Recommendations for neonatal transport]. / Recomendaciones sobre transporte neonatal.

During pregnancy, it is not always possible to identify maternal or foetal risk factors. Infants requiring specialised medical care are not always born in centres providing intensive care and will need to be transferred to a referral centre where intensive care can be provided. Therefore Neonatal Transport needs to be considered as part of the organisation of perinatal health care. The aim of Neonatal Transport is to transfer a newborn infant requiring intensive care to a centre where specialised resources and experience can be provided for the appropriate assessment and continuing treatment of a sick newborn infant. Intrauterine transfer is the ideal mode of transport when the birth of an infant with risk factors is diagnosed. Unfortunately, not all problems can be detected in advance with enough time to safely transfer a pregnant woman. Around 30- 50% of risk factors will be diagnosed during labour or soon after birth. Therefore, it is important to have the knowledge and resources to resuscitate and stabilise a newborn infant, as well as a specialised neonatal transport system. With this specialised transport it is possible to transfer newly born infants with the same level of care that they would receive if they had been born in a referral hospital, without increasing their risks or affecting the wellbeing of the newborn. The Standards Committee of the Spanish Society of Neonatology reviewed and updated recommendations for intrauterine transport and indications for neonatal transfer. They also reviewed organisational and logistic factors involved with performing neonatal transport. The Committee review included the type of personnel who should be involved; communication between referral and receiving hospitals; documentation; mode of transport; equipment to stabilise newly born infants; management during transfer, and admission at the referral hospital.

[Health care levels and minimum recommendations for neonatal care]. / Niveles asistenciales y recomendaciones de mínimos para la atención neonatal.

A policy statement on the levels of care and minimum recommendations for neonatal healthcare was first proposed by the Standards Committee and the Board of the Spanish Society of Neonatology in 2004. This allowed us to define the level of care of each center in our country, as well as the health and technical requirements by levels of care to be defined. This review takes into account changes in neonatal care in the last few years and to optimize the location of resources. Facilities that provide care for newborn infants should be organized within a regionalized system of perinatal care. The functional capabilities of each level of care should be defined clearly and uniformly, including requirements for equipment, facilities, personnel, ancillary services, training, and the organization of services (including transport) needed to cover each level of care.

[Recommendations for the computerisation of neonatology services]. / Recomendaciones para la informatización de los servicios de neonatología.

The aim is to provide a framework for data collection in the health area of newborn infants allowing harmonization of their care. This requires knowing the population served, and the greatest difficulty is the absence of a data collection system and standards of care for all conditions of the newborn infant. It is essential to have a single record with the main perinatal and neonatal data of all newborn infants. The Spanish Society of Neonatology (SEN) should be responsible for the database, which must meet all legal requirements of privacy and confidentiality. It is possible to determine the relative weight of the pathology treated using Diagnostic Related Groups (DRG) and the results from a quality care perspective. Guidelines for diagnosis and treatment may be established by comparative analysis (benchmarking studies…). Conclusion and Recommendation. It is necessary to know the newborn population served, and define criteria for diagnosis and treatment to improve quality of care. The SEN wishes to address those responsible for the care in hospitals, and to ask for their support and cooperation in the implementation of these recommendations.