Nursing of prematurely born children: indicators of the effectiveness

Abstract

The study and monitoring of international indicators of the health status of premature infants is the current vector of scientific research in neonatology.Objective. To assess the effectiveness of the nursing technologies of premature babies in the Republic of Belarus based on the analysis of long-term indicators of morbidity, mortality and survival of the infants with extremely low body weight.Material and methods. Statistical reports data were used for a retrospective analysis of epidemiological indicators for the period of 2002–2018.Results. The proportion of premature infants in the Republic of Belarus was stabilized at 4,2–4,5% increase in the absolute numbers, including those born weighing less than 1500 g. The ratio of the absolute number of alive and stillborn infants with extremely low body weight is many times higher than the initial values (p<0,05). The survival rate of infants with a body weight of 500–999g up to 1 year increased 2 times to the maximum level in 2018 (81,5%). There was an increase in the overall incidence of premature children in 2002–2010 (p<0,05) and a decrease by 2016 (p=0,001), including those born with a body weight of 500–999 g. Respiratory distress syndrome, intrauterine hypoxia and asphyxia during childbirth, an increase in the frequency of infections specific to the perinatal period (p <0,05) were registered more often. Among the children born with a body weight of 500–999 g, the incidence of congenital pneumonia for the period 2002–2009 increased to a maximum level of 263,4 ‰ (p <0,05) with a twofold decrease by 2018. The republican mortality rate of premature babies was stabilized at the level of 0,95 ‰ in the last 9 years, while the indicator was decreased 5 times among children weighing 500–999 g.Conclusion. The assessment of the long-term dynamics of the main indicators of the health status of premature infants in the Republic of Belarus testified to the effectiveness of a complex of organizational and medical measures for their nursing.