The patterns and causes of neonatal mortality at a tertiary hospital in Oman

Mohamed Abdellatif*, Masood Ahmed, Maria Flordeliz Bataclan, Ashfaq Ahmed Khan, Abeer Al Battashi, Abdullah Al Maniri

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

19 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objective: To report the patterns and causes of neonatal death from a tertiary care neonatal intensive care unit over a period of four years. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study where four years data (January 2006 - December 2009) of all inborn neonatal admissions and deaths were collected from the neonatal intensive care unit at Sultan Qaboos University hospital on predesigned forms. All out born admissions and deaths were excluded. The causes of neonatal death were classified using Wigglesworth's classification. Results: The number of inborn live births during the study period was 10064 and the total number of inborn neonatal admissions was 1475. The total deaths (neonatal and post neonatal) at the neonatal intensive care unit was 73 (63 inborn and 10 out born). Among the inborn, five deaths were post neonatal deaths and hence, excluded from analysis. Among the remaining inborn neonatal deaths (n=58), 34 (59%) were males and 24 (41%) were females. The number of neonatal admissions increased over the years during the study period from 248 to 356, while the number of deaths also increased from 10 deaths in 2006, to 20 deaths in 2009. The primary causes of neonatal deaths were prematurity and its complications 52% (n=30). Lethal congenital malformations lead to 17 (29%) newborn deaths, specific diagnosis in 7 newborns (12%), and birth asphyxia in four (7%) of cases. Conclusion: There was an increasing trend of neonatal admissions and deaths among inborn babies. Prematurity, with sepsis as its major complication and congenital malformations were the leading cause of neonatal mortality.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)422-426
Number of pages5
JournalOman Medical Journal
Volume28
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2013

Keywords

  • Neonatal mortality
  • Oman
  • Prematurity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Medicine

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