Neonatal meningitis at Bustamante Hospital for Children: a retrospective study - abstract

ABSTRACT

Records of 36 neonates with meningitis were reviewed over a five-year period, between 1982 and 1986. The rate of neonatal meningitis was 18.5/1,000 neonatal admissions with a male predilection. Predisposing factors were identified in 30 per cent of neonates; late onset disease was the predominant type. Group B haemolytic streptococcus was the leading cause, followed by gram-negative bacteria. The long-term morbidity was 28 per cent; complications varied from mild, early onset seizures to permanent disability such as cerebral palsy. Seventy per cent of the complications arose in late onset disease type; gram-negative bacteria (60 per cent) were the predominant cause. The fatality rate was 3/36 (8 per cent) (AU)