Epidemiological aspects of prematurity at Al Yamamah Hospital in Riyadh

Abstract

Background: Prematurity continues to be the primary cause of infant mortality and morbidity globally. Proper, regular neonate screening is necessary to lower the burden of healthcare associated with prematurity and its complications. Aim: This study aimed to assess the epidemiological features of prematurity and survival rates in preterm neonates. Methods: Retrospective observational research was conducted at AlYamamah Hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on preterm infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit with prematurity between January 2022 and July 2023. SPSS program version 22.0 was used for data analysis. Ethical approval was obtained from the ethics committee of King Fahd Medical Research Center. Results: A total of 402 participants were enrolled; 37.6% and 46.7% had very low birth weight and were very preterm, respectively. Significant inverse correlations were found between mortality, birth weight, and gestational age (P≤0.001). The major found complications were Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) (14.2%) and pulmonary hemorrhage (11.2%). Conclusions: There was a male dominancy among preterm infants, and the largest proportions of the infants were very low birth weight and very preterm and experienced many complications, which were majorly PDA. There were inverse correlations between gestational age and birth weight with mortality rate and complications.