Project description:OBJECTIVE:Evaluate whether telemedicine can be used to perform dysmorphology and neurologic examinations in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) by determining the examination accuracy, limitations and optimized procedures. STUDY DESIGN:Prospective evaluation of NICU patients referred for subspecialty consultation for dysmorphic features (n=10) or encephalopathy (n=10). A physician at bedside (bedside clinician) performed an in-person examination that was viewed in real time by a remote physician (remote consultant). Standardized examinations were recorded and compared. Subsequently, a qualitative approach established technique adjustments and optimization procedures necessary to improve visualization. RESULT:Telemedicine examinations identified 81 of 87 (93%) dysmorphology examination abnormalities and 37 of 39 (92%) neurologic examination abnormalities. Optimization of remote consultant visualization required an active bedside clinician assisting in camera and patient adjustments. CONCLUSION:Telemedicine can be used to perform accurately many components of the dysmorphology or neurologic examinations in NICU patients, but physicians must be mindful of specific limitations.
Project description:AimTo investigate the frequency, etiology, and current management strategies for diarrhea in newborn.MethodsRetrospective, nationwide study involving 5801 subjects observed in neonatal intensive care units during 3 years. The main anamnesis and demographic characteristics, etiology and characteristics of diarrhea, nutritional and therapeutic management, clinical outcomes were evaluated.ResultsThirty-nine cases of diarrhea (36 acute, 3 chronic) were identified. The occurrence rate of diarrhea was 6.72 per 1000 hospitalized newborn. Etiology was defined in 29 of 39 newborn (74.3%): food allergy (20.5%), gastrointestinal infections (17.9%), antibiotic-associated diarrhea (12.8%), congenital defects of ion transport (5.1%), withdrawal syndrome (5.1%), Hirschsprung's disease (2.5%), parenteral diarrhea (2.5%), cystic fibrosis (2.5%), and metabolic disorders (2.5%). Three patients died due to complications related to diarrhea (7.7%). In 19 of 39 patients (48.7%), rehydration was performed exclusively by the enteral route.ConclusionDiarrhea in neonates is a challenging clinical condition due to the possible heterogeneous etiologies and severe outcomes. Specific guidelines are advocated in order to optimize management of diarrhea in this particular setting.
Project description:The incidence, aetiology and pathophysiology of pneumomediastinum (PM), an uncommon and potentially serious disease in neonates and children, were evaluated. A retrospective chart review of all patients diagnosed with PM who were hospitalised in the intensive care unit of the University Children's Hospital Zürich, Switzerland, from 2000 to 2006, was preformed. We analysed the incidence, severity and causes of PM and investigated the possible differences between neonatal and non-neonatal cases. Seven children and nine neonates were identified with PM. All patients had a good outcome. Six cases of PM in the group of children older than 4 weeks were deemed to be caused by trauma, infection and sports, whereas one case was idiopathic. All nine neonatal cases presented with symptoms of respiratory distress. We were able to attribute four cases of neonatal PM to pulmonary infection, immature lungs and ventilatory support. Five neonatal cases remained unexplained after careful review of the hospital records. In conclusion, PM in children and neonates has a good prognosis. Mostly, it is associated with extrapulmonary air at other sites. It is diagnosed by chest X-ray alone. We identified mechanical events leading to the airway rupture in most children >4 weeks of life, whereas we were unable to identify a cause in half of the neonates studied (idiopathic PM).
Project description:BACKGROUND:Variation in healthcare delivery and outcomes in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) may be partly explained by differences in safety culture. OBJECTIVE:To describe NICU care giver assessments of safety culture, explore variability within and between NICUs on safety culture domains, and test for association with care giver characteristics. METHODS:NICU care givers in 12 hospitals were surveyed using the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire (SAQ), which has six scales: teamwork climate, safety climate, job satisfaction, stress recognition, perception of management and working conditions. Scale means, SDs and percent positives (percent agreement) were calculated for each NICU. RESULTS:There was substantial variation in safety culture domains among NICUs. Composite mean score across the six domains ranged from 56.3 to 77.8 on a 100-point scale and NICUs in the top four NICUs were significantly different from the bottom four (p<0.001). Across the six domains, respondent assessments varied widely, but were least positive on perceptions of management (3%-80% positive; mean 33.3%) and stress recognition (18%-61% positive; mean 41.3%). Comparisons of SAQ scale scores between NICUs and a previously published adult ICU cohort generally revealed higher scores for NICUs. Composite scores for physicians were 8.2 (p=0.04) and 9.5 (p=0.02) points higher than for nurses and ancillary personnel. CONCLUSION:There is significant variation and scope for improvement in safety culture among these NICUs. The NICU variation was similar to variation in adult ICUs, but NICU scores were generally higher. Future studies should validate whether safety culture measured with the SAQ correlates with clinical and operational outcomes in NICUs.
Project description:Pichia kudriavzevii causes life-threatening infections in immune compromised hosts including hospitalized neonates. This pathogen is resistant to fluconazole while uncommon, strains resistant to multiple antifungal drugs voriconazole, amphotericin B and echinocandins have been reported in healthcare environments. Understanding how P. kudriavzevii spread, persist, and adapt to healthcare settings could help us develop better management strategies. In this study, whole genome sequencing identifies multiple outbreaks of bloodstream infections caused by P. kudriavzevii in a single neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) over five years. Interestingly, two genetically diverse clusters of P. kudriavzevii population showed frequent loss of heterozygosity (LOH) events between two temporal samples. The first outbreak cluster (during 2015-16) showed LOH at chromosomes 1, 4 and 5 and the other outbreak cluster (year 2020) exhibited marked LOH at chromosome 2. The circulation of two separate strain clusters of P. kudriavzevii suggests nosocomial transmission in the NICU in different time periods. Further, to evaluate the gene expression difference between isolates from two clusters, we compared the transcriptomic profiles of three isolates of cluster I and II and exhibiting distinct fluconazole MICs. While no difference was found at the azole target gene ERG11 or the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter genes, differences in transcript abundance were found between the two isolates in genes coding for cell division and filamentation, repressor of ABC gene, FCR1 and ERG5 gene involved in ergosterol biosynthesis pathway. Our study indicates significant diversity, persistence, and rapid evolution of P. kudriavzevii within a single NICU.
Project description:Hospital length of stay (LOS) is important to administrators and families of neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). A prediction model for NICU LOS was developed using predictors birth weight, gestational age and two severity of illness tools, the score for neonatal acute physiology, perinatal extension (SNAPPE) and the morbidity assessment index for newborns (MAIN).Consecutive admissions (n=293) to a New England regional level III NICU were retrospectively collected. Multiple predictive models were compared for complexity and goodness-of-fit, coefficient of determination (R (2)) and predictive error. The optimal model was validated prospectively with consecutive admissions (n=615). Observed and expected LOS was compared.The MAIN models had best Akaike's information criterion, highest R (2) (0.786) and lowest predictive error. The best SNAPPE model underestimated LOS, with substantial variability, yet was fairly well calibrated by birthweight category. LOS was longer in the prospective cohort than the retrospective cohort, without differences in birth weight, gestational age, MAIN or SNAPPE.LOS prediction is improved by accounting for severity of illness in the first week of life, beyond factors known at birth. Prospective validation of both MAIN and SNAPPE models is warranted.