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Early neonatal deaths with perinatal asphyxia in very low birth weight Brazilian infants

Abstract

Objective:

The objective of this study was to assess the frequency of early deaths associated with birth asphyxia of very low birth weight infants between 2005 and 2010, in Brazil.

Study Design:

This population study enrolled all live births with birth weight from 400 to 1499 g, gestational age 22 weeks, without malformations that died up to 6 days after birth with perinatal asphyxia. Asphyxia was defined if intrauterine hypoxia, asphyxia at birth or meconium aspiration syndrome were written in any line of the death certificate. Active search was carried out in 27 Brazilian federative units.

Result:

For every 1000 live births of very low birth weight infants without congenital malformations, 40.25 and 32.38 died with birth asphyxia in the first week after birth, respectively, in 2005 and 2010 (P<0.001). The contribution of birth asphyxia to early neonatal death of these infants was approximately 10 to 12% all study years.

Conclusion:

Reduction of birth asphyxia in very low birth weight infants is essential to reducing neonatal mortality in Brazil.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the State Coordinators of Brazilian Neonatal Resuscitation Program from 2005 to 2012, the Health Departments and the Fundação SEADE for data collection in each federative unit of Brazil. We thank Dr Eduardo da Silva Vaz, president of Brazilian Paediatric Society, for the continuous support to the Neonatal Resuscitation Program. The Fundação Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria (Pediatric Brazilian Society Foundation) funded the software for data entry, the professionals that entered the data in the database, and the English translation of the manuscript by American Journal Experts. The Foundation did not have any role in the study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report and in the decision to submit the manuscript for publication. The Institutional Review Board from the Federal University of São Paulo approved the study protocol.

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Correspondence to R Guinsburg.

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de Almeida, M., Moreira, L., Vaz dos Santos, R. et al. Early neonatal deaths with perinatal asphyxia in very low birth weight Brazilian infants. J Perinatol 35, 954–957 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2015.114

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