Abstract
Objective:
To describe the neonatal outcomes of a case series of infants who were prenatally diagnosed with potential life-limiting conditions and to whom individualized comfort measures were offered.
Study Design:
This is a retrospective analysis of the postnatal outcomes of a selected population of 49 infants prenatally diagnosed with potential life-limiting conditions whose parents were prenatally referred for counseling to the comfort care team.
Result:
The prenatal diagnosis was confirmed postnatally in 45 infants. The only four survivors had a significant discrepancy between prenatal and postnatal diagnosis. Whether they were treated with individualized comfort measures (n=28) or intensive care (n=17), all the newborns died with similar median age at death (2 days).
Conclusion:
Diagnostic accuracy is the main determinant of outcomes. Provision of intensive care neither prevents the death of infants affected by life-limiting conditions nor prolongs life compared with that of infants treated with individualized comfort measures.
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Parravicini, E., Lorenz, J. Neonatal outcomes of fetuses diagnosed with life-limiting conditions when individualized comfort measures are proposed. J Perinatol 34, 483–487 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2014.40
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2014.40
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