All issues > Volume 19(8); 1976

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1976;19(8):576-583. Published online August 31, 1976.

Neonatal Mortality in Newborn Nursery

Jung Hyeon Jo¹, Woo Kap Chung¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine,Jung-ang University

Abstract

Authors studied neonatal mortality on the various aspect of 64 neonatal deaths in the nursery room among 3,511 live-borns delivered at Han-gang Sacred Heart Hospital, Jung-ang University during the 3 year and 8 month period January 1972 through August 1975. The results obtained are as follows: 1.The neonatal mortality rate was 18. 2 per 1,000 live-births. 2.The sex ratio of live-births for males to females was 102. 8 : 100 and that of neonatal deaths in the nursery room was 120.7 : 100. 3.The major cause of neonatal deaths was an undetermined prematurity which accounted for about half of all neonatal deaths, and next abnormal pulmonary ventilation, congenital anoma-lies, some kinds of infections and birth injuries in order. 4.The incidence of premature births was 10.8% of all live-borns, its neonatal death rate was 11.1%, and the incidence of full-term infants was 89.2%, and its death rate was 0.7%. Neo natal mortality rate of premature infants was 15 times that of full-term infants. 5. The percentage distribution of all live-borns for birth weight was 12. 6% for 2,500 gm or less, 87.4% for 2,501 gm or more and their mortality rate was 11. 3%, 0.5%, respectively. Over-all neonatal deaths of infants with birth weight of 2,500 or less accounted for 78.1% of all newborn deaths in the nersery and was 24.7 times those of group with birth weight of 2,501 gm or more. 6.Of all neonatal deaths in the nursery, 39% died within 24 hours after birth, 61% within 48 hours and 17% within 72 hours. 7.The neonatal mortality rate in twin births was 3. 8%. 8.The most frequent group of maternal age in this study was between 25 and 34 years(80. 5% of all women). The neonatal mortality rate was highest in the group of maternal age between 40 and 44 years; it was 43. 4 per 1,000 live-borns. 9.There were increasing tendency in proportion of spontaneous vaginal delivery and decreasing tendency in proportion of vaccum extracted, delivery succeedingly every year, however, relatively stable tendency in cesarean section and breech delivery. 10. The neonatal mortality rate referring to the type of delivery was in the order of vaccum extracted delivery (0.7%), spontaneous vaginal elivery(1.3%), breech delivery (3. 6%) and cesarean section (5. 4%).

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