NEONATAL SEPSIS AT UNIOSUN TEACHING HOSPITAL, OSOGBO, SOUTHWEST, NIGERIA

Abstract

Background: Neonatal sepsis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality of newborns, especially in developing countries. Even though neonatal sepsis is one of the major clinical conditions for neonatal admissions in developing countries; however, this is the first study of neonatal sepsis in our Teaching Hospital. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of confirmed sepsis and the bacteria isolates of neonatal sepsis among term neonates with maternal and

neonatal risk factors for sepsis admitted to UNIOSUN Teaching Hospital (UTH), Osogbo, Southwest Nigeria.

Methodology: This was a consecutive, cross-sectional descriptive study of one hundred and six term newborns over 6 months with maternal and neonatal risk factors for sepsis at admission into the newborn unit. Exclusion criteria included preterm babies and babies with asphyxia. Clinical features and laboratory results, including blood cultures, were obtained. Data obtained were entered into SPSS version 25 and analyzed using the chi-squared test.

Results: Of the 291 neonates admitted during the period, 106 neonates who had risk factors for sepsis were studied. Sixty-six (62.3%) were males and 40 (37.7%) were females, with female-to-male ratio of 1:1.7. Thirty-five (33.0%) had positive blood culture-proven sepsis. Staphylococcus aureus was the most commonly isolated organism. Of maternal risk factors, peripartal fever and dysuria were found in 27 (25.5) and 20 (18.9%) mothers, respectively. However, higher proportions of neonates with abnormal temperature (Odds ratio = 6.545, 95% Confidence intervals {CI} = 1.825-23.465 and p-value = 0.002), respiratory distress (Odds ratio = 2.971,95%CI = 1.221-7.232, p-value = 0.014) and convulsions (Odd ratio = 3.278, 95%CI = 1.309-8.208, p-value = 0.009) had positive blood Culture. Conclusion: Neonatal sepsis remains a growing concern, especially in babies with respiratory distress and those born to mothers with peripartal fever.

Recommendation: Strengthen policies, enhance newborn care facilities, raise awareness of early signs, and ensure neonatologists follow screening protocols and provide timely, coordinated care.