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Perinatal factors associated with admission to neonatal intensive care unit following cesarean delivery in Kano, northern Nigeria

  • Fatima Usman , Fatimah I. Tsiga-Ahmed , Zubaida L. Farouk , Mahmoud J. Gambo , Alhassan D. Mohammed , Abdullahi M. Mohammed , Hamisu M. Salihu and Muktar H. Aliyu
Published/Copyright: January 19, 2022

Abstract

Objectives

Cesarean section is the most common obstetric surgical procedure, with associated risks for adverse neonatal outcomes. The interplay of perinatal factors associated with neonatal admissions following cesarean delivery remains poorly understood in developing countries. We examined how perinatal and facility-based factors affect Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) admission after cesarean delivery in northern Nigeria.

Methods

A prospective cohort study involving 200 women undergoing cesarean section were consecutively enrolled with subsequent follow-up of their infants in the post-natal period. Data were abstracted from the medical record using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. The primary outcomes were NICU admission and intrauterine or early neonatal deaths. Binary logistic regression modelling was used to identify variables independently associated with the outcomes.

Results

Over the study period (six months), there were 200 cesarean sections. A total of 30 (15.0%) neonates were admitted into the NICU following the procedure. No stillbirths or early neonatal deaths were recorded. NICU admission was associated with gestational age (preterm vs. term [adjusted odds ratio, aOR: 18.9, 95% confidence interval (CI): 4.0–90.4]), birth weight (small vs. appropriate [aOR: 6.7, 95% CI 1.9–22.7] and large vs. appropriate birth weight [aOR: 20.3, 95% CI 2.9–143.7]) and the number of indications for cesarean section (≥2 vs. one [aOR: 0.2, 95% 0.1–0.8]).

Conclusions

Prematurity, small and large for gestational age neonates; and indications for cesarean section were associated with increased likelihood of neonatal admission following cesarean delivery. These findings could inform ongoing quality enhancement initiatives to improve NICU admission outcomes at the study site, and other similar settings.


Corresponding author: Mahmoud J. Gambo, MBBS, FWACP. Department of Pediatrics, Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital & Bayero University, Kano, Nigeria, Phone: +234 8034503932, E-mail: mahmoudjah@yahoo.co.uk

  1. Research funding: None declared.

  2. Author contributions: All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.

  3. Competing interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.

  4. Informed consent: Informed consent was obtained from all individuals included in this study.

  5. Ethical approval: Ethical approval was obtained from the AKTH Research Ethics Committee (BUK/CHS/REC/VI/57).

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Received: 2021-08-11
Accepted: 2021-12-18
Published Online: 2022-01-19
Published in Print: 2022-05-25

© 2022 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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