J Korean Soc Neonatol.  2008 May;15(1):61-66.

Predictors of Serious Bacterial and Viral Infections among Neonates with Fever

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University, Seoul, Korea. ljhped@catholic.ac.kr
  • 2Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, College of Medicine, The Catholic University, Seoul, Korea.

Abstract

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the epidemiologic features of febrile illnesses in newborns and to predict the risk of serious infections in this population.
METHODS
A retrospective study was conducted on 123 full-term infants <30 days of age with an axillary temperature >38 degrees C who were hospitalized between 2000 and 2006. Neonates with prenatal risk factors, congenital anomalies, antibiotic administration prior to admission to the hospital, or suspected hospital-acquired infections were excluded. We evaluated the symptoms, physical examination findings, laboratory data, and clinical course between the high- and low-risk groups for serious infections.
RESULTS
The high-risk group included 30 infants with the following diagnoses in order of frequency: aseptic meningitis, urinary tract infection, bacterial meningitis, infectious enteritis, sepsis concomitant with disseminated intravascular coagulopathy, bacteremia, pneumonia, cellulitis, and omphalitis. Leukocytosis and thrombocytopenia were statistically different between the two groups. Factors, such as moaning signs, seizures, body temperature, and pulse rate were statistically significant.
CONCLUSION
Unlike previous studies, we included newborns with clinical bacterial infections and aseptic meningitis as the high-risk group. Leukocytosis, thrombocytopenia, moaning signs, seizures, and changes in vital signs were considered useful predictors for identifying febrile neonates at high-risk for serious infections in spite of a difference in the definition of serious infection.

Keyword

Newborn; Fever; Infection; Risk

MeSH Terms

Bacteremia
Bacterial Infections
Body Temperature
Cellulitis
Enteritis
Fever
Heart Rate
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Leukocytosis
Meningitis, Aseptic
Meningitis, Bacterial
Physical Examination
Pneumonia
Retrospective Studies
Risk Factors
Seizures
Sepsis
Thrombocytopenia
Urinary Tract Infections
Vital Signs
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