Prematurity of Less than 1000 Grams: Epidemiological, Diagnostic and Prognostic Aspects in a Neonatology Unit at Dakar (Senegal)

Author(s): Yaay Joor Koddu Biigé DIENG*, Djénéba Fafa CISSE, Ndèye Fatou SOW, Aminata MBAYE, Awa KANE, Bienfait MUNDEKE MUJINYA, Guillaye DIAGNE, Amadou SOW, Idrissa Demba BA, Papa Moctar FAYE, Ousmane NDIAYE

Introduction: The aim of this study was to assess morbidity and mortality in premature infants with a birth weight of less than 1000 grams in a referral hospital in Senegal.

Patients and method: We conducted a retrospective, descriptive and analytical study of 142 cases of premature infants weighing less than 1000 grams admitted between January 2014 and December 2020 (7 years) to the neonatology department in Dakar.

Results: The most common maternal age group in our population was under 25 years (56.2%). Primiparous mothers were strongly represented (34.2%). The sex ratio was 1.1. The mean age on admission was 4.7 days, with predominance of 0 days (58.8%). The most common respiratory complications were apnoea (85.6%) and hyaline membrane disease (65.9%), others were jaundice (60.6%), secondary neonatal infections (53.5%), intraventricular haemorrhage (47.5%), persistent patent ductus arteriosus (22.6%). The most common associated pathologies were intrauterine growth retardation (32%) and congenital heart disease (28.8%). Mortality was 55.6% and the bivariate analysis found the following factors: Extreme prematurity (p = 0.004), admission time > 24 hours (p = 0.003), IUGR (p = 0.002), shock (p = 0.000), secondary infection (p = 0.004), respiratory distress (p = 0.003), multiple pregnancies (p = 0.033) and absence of breastfeeding (p = 0.000).

Conclusion: Improving the technical platform, increasing the number of staff and organising perinatal networks remain key areas to be developed in order to improve the survival rate of premature babies weighing less than 1000 grams in our regions.