Effect of antenatal betamethasone on early systemic inflammatory indices in preterm infants with gestational age < 32 weeks

Introduction: Antenatal glucocorticoid (AGC) therapy is routinely given to pregnant women when preterm delivery is expected. Systemic inflammatory indices are thought to have predictive value in some neonatal diseases. However, the effect of AGC on systemic inflammatory indices is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of AGC treatment on systemic inflammatory indices, morbidities and mortality in preterm infants. Methods: All preterm babies born at < 32 weeks of gestation were evaluated retrospectively and included in the study. Systemic inflammatory indices, demographic characteristics and clinical results were compared by dividing the babies into groups based on the application of AGC to their mothers (24 mg betamethasone, 12 mg betamethasone and non-AGC). Results: A total of 869 preterm infants were evaluated in the study. As the use of AGC increased, respiratory distress syndrome and mortality were found to decrease significantly (p 0.05). Conclusion: AGC had no effect on systemic inflammatory indices in preterm infants. The effect of AGC, especially on the lung, may be due to local effects rather than systemic effects

Investigation of the effect of vitamin K1 prophylaxis on newborn screenings tests in newborns

Background: Routine screening for hereditary disorders in newborns includes screening for treatable metabolic and endocrine disorders, such as biotidinase deficiency, galactosemia, maple syrup urine disease, hypothyroidism, and cystic fibrosis. Incorrect test results may be encountered due to the use of vitamin K1. To investigate the interference effect of vitamin K1 on neonatal screening tests and to raise awareness of erroneous measurements. Methods: Heel blood samples were taken from 25 newborns born in a neonatal intensive care unit. Dry blood C0, C2, C3, C4, C4DC, C5:1, C5OH, C5DC, C6, C6DC, C8, C8:1, C8DC, C10, C10:1, C10DC, C12, C14, C14:1, C14:2, C16, C16:1, C18, C18:1, C18:2, C18:OH, methylglutaryl, valine, leucine/isoleucine, methionine, phenylalanine, argininosuccinic acid, aspartate, alanine, arginine, citrulline, glycine, ornithine, and glutamate tests were studied using the tandem mass spectrometry (MS) method. The results of the heel blood samples obtained before and after the application of vitamin K1 (Phyto menadione) were compared. Results: In two studies conducted with in vitro and in vivo tests, C0, C2, C3, C4, C4DC, C5, C5OH, C6, C8, C10, C10:1, C14, C16, C16:1, C18, C18:1, methylglutaryl, phenylalanine, argininosuccinic acid, tyrosine, aspartate, arginine, citrulline, glycine, and glutamine were all significantly elevated (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Heel blood samples may yield false results due to vitamin K1 administration. In the case of doubtful results, a new sample should be taken and the measurement should be repeated. © 2023 Sciendo. All rights reserved

A Multicentered Study on Epidemiologic and Clinical Characteristics of 37 Neonates With Community-acquired COVID-19

Can, Emrah/0000-0002-2163-6564; Reis, AlessanRSS/0000-0001-8486-7469WOS: 000573923900002PubMed: 32932329Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) primarily affects adults and spares children, whereas very little is known about neonates. We tried to define the clinical characteristics, risk factors, laboratory, and imagining results of neonates with community-acquired COVID-19. Methods: This prospective multicentered cohort study included 24 neonatal intensive care units around Turkey, wherein outpatient neonates with COVID-19 were registered in an online national database. Full-term and premature neonates diagnosed with COVID-19 were included in the study, whether hospitalized or followed up as ambulatory patients. Neonates without severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) via reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction testing or whose mothers had been diagnosed with COVID-19 during pregnancy were excluded. Results: Thirty-seven symptomatic neonates were included. the most frequent findings were fever, hypoxemia, and cough (49%, 41%, 27%, respectively). Oxygen administration (41%) and noninvasive ventilation (16%) were frequently required; however, mechanical ventilation (3%) was rarely needed. Median hospitalization was 11 days (1-35 days). One patient with Down syndrome and congenital cardiovascular disorders died in the study period. C-reactive protein (CRP) and prothrombin time (PT) levels were found to be higher in patients who needed supplemental oxygen (0.9 [0.1-8.6] vs. 5.8 [0.3-69.2]p= 0.002, 11.9 [10.1-17.2] vs. 15.2 [11.7-18.0]p= 0.01, respectively) or who were severe/critical (1.0 [0.01-8.6] vs. 4.5 [0.1-69.2]p= 0.01, 11.7 [10.1-13.9] vs. 15.0 [11.7-18.0]p= 0.001, respectively). Conclusions: Symptomatic neonates with COVID-19 had high rates of respiratory support requirements. High CRP levels or a greater PT should alert the physician to more severe disease.Turkish Neonatal SocietyThe Turkish Neonatal Society funded the online registration system of the study. Funders had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis and interpretation, writing of the report, and decision to publish of the article. the corresponding author has full access to all the data in the study and takes final responsibility for the decision to submit for publication. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript. M.K.K. wrote the first draft of the manuscript, no honorarium, grant, or other form of payment was given to anyone to produce the manuscript. To the best of our knowledge, no conflict of interest, financial or other, exists. There are no prior publications or submissions with any overlapping information, including studies and patients

Epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of neonates with late-onset COVID-19: 1-year data of Turkish Neonatal Society

The literature on neonates with SARS-CoV-2 is mainly concerned with perinatal cases, and scanty data are available about environmentally infected neonates. To fill knowledge gaps on the course and prognosis of neonatal cases, we analyzed 1-year data from the Turkish Neonatal Society in this prospective cohort study of neonates with postnatal transmission. Data from 44 neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), of neonates with positive RT-PCR results at days 5-28 of life, were extracted from the online registry system and analyzed. Of 176 cases, most were term infants with normal birth weight. Fever was the most common symptom (64.2%), followed by feeding intolerance (25.6%), and cough (21.6%). The median length of hospitalization was 9 days, with approximately one quarter of infants receiving some type of ventilatory support. Myocarditis (5.7%) was the most common complication during follow-up. Among the clinical findings, cough (odds ratio [OR]: 9.52, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.17-21.71), tachypnea (OR: 26.5, 95% CI: 9.59-73.19), and chest retractions (OR: 27.5, 95% CI: 5.96-126.96) were associated with more severe clinical disease. Also, there were significant differences in the C-reactive protein level, prothrombin time (PT), partial thromboplastin time, international normalized ratio, and days in the NICU (p = 0.002, p = 0.012, p = 0.034, p = 0.008, and p 0.001, respectively) between patients with mild-moderate and severe-critical presentations. A PT above 14 s was a significant predictor of severe/critical cases, with a sensitivity of 64% and specificity of 73%. Conclusions: Our data showed that late-onset COVID-19 infection in neonates who need hospitalization can be severe, showing associations with high rates of ventilatory support and myocarditis. Cough, tachypnea, and retractions on admission suggest a severe disease course

A multicenter study on epidemiological and clinical characteristics of 125 newborns born to women infected with COVID-19 by Turkish Neonatal Society (vol 46, pg 631, 2020) - [Correction]

WOS: 000561728300002PubMed: 32827274[No abstract available

Relationship Between Hemodynamically Significant Ductus Arteriosus and Ischemia-Modified Albumin in Premature Infants

Hemodynamically significant ductus arteriosus (hsPDA) may alter organ perfusion by interfering blood flow to the tissues. Therefore, in infants with hsPDA, hypoxia occurs in many tissues. In this study, we aimed to investigate the diagnostic significance of serum (ischemia-modified albumin) IMA levels as a screening tool for hsPDA, and its relation to the severity of the disease in the preterm neonates. For this purpose, seventy-two premature infants with gestation age <34 weeks were included in the study. Thirty premature infants with hsPDA were assigned as the study group and 42 premature infants without PDA were determined as the control group. Blood samples were collected before the treatment and 24 h after the treatment, and analyzed for IMA levels. IMA levels in the study group (1.26 +/- 0.36 ABSU) were found to be significantly higher than control group (0.65 +/- 0.12 ABSU) (p < 0.05). In infants with hsPDA, a positive correlation was found between IMA and PDA diameter (rho = 0.876, p = 0.022), and LA/Ao ratio (rho = 0.863, p = 0.014). The cut-off value of IMA for hsPDA was measured as 0.78 ABSU with 88.89 % sensitivity, and 90.24 % specificity, 85.71 % positive predictive, 92.5 % negative predictive value [area under the curve (AUC) = 0.96; p < 0.001]. The mean IMA value of the infants with hsPDA before treatment was 1.26 +/- 0.36 ABSU, and the mean IMA value of infants after medical treatment was 0.67 +/- 0.27 ABSU (p = 0.03). We concluded that IMA can be used as a marker for the diagnosis and monitoring of a successful treatment of hsPDA

Protective Effects of Valproic Acid, a Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor, against Hyperoxic Lung Injury in a Neonatal Rat Model

Histone acetylation and deacetylation may play a role in the pathogenesis of inflammatory lung diseases. We evaluated the preventive effect of valproic acid (VPA), a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor, on neonatal hyperoxic lung injury.Forty newborn rat pups were randomized in normoxia, normoxia+VPA, hyperoxia and hyperoxia+VPA groups. Pups in the normoxia and normoxia+VPA groups were kept in room air and received daily saline and VPA (30 mg/kg) injections, respectively, while those in hyperoxia and hyperoxia+VPA groups were exposed to 95% O2 and received daily saline and VPA (30 mg/kg) injections for 10 days, respectively. Growth, histopathological, biochemical and molecular biological indicators of lung injury, apoptosis, inflammation, fibrosis and histone acetylation were evaluated.VPA treatment during hyperoxia significantly improved weight gain, histopathologic grade, radial alveolar count and lamellar body membrane protein expression, while it decreased number of TUNEL(+) cells and active Caspase-3 expression. Expressions of TGFβ3 and phospho-SMAD2 proteins and levels of tissue proinflammatory cytokines as well as lipid peroxidation biomarkers were reduced, while anti-oxidative enzyme activities were enhanced by VPA treatment. VPA administration also reduced HDAC activity while increasing acetylated H3 and H4 protein expressions.The present study shows for the first time that VPA treatment ameliorates lung damage in a neonatal rat model of hyperoxic lung injury. The preventive effect of VPA involves HDAC inhibition