Neonatal sepsis is one of the major causes of death in newborn babies (Meena et al. 263). Early diagnosis is important because if an infection is not detected early enough, it can have adverse clinical outcomes. There are two common methods used to diagnose neonatal sepsis namely peripheral venous blood culture (PVBC) and umbilical cord blood culture (UCBC) (Meena et al. 263). The article explores a research study conducted to evaluate the efficacy of using UCBC and PVBC to diagnose sepsis in newborns at risk of early-onset neonatal sepsis (EONS). The study sample included 40 newborn babies at risk of EONS. Umbilical cord blood was collected from mothers during childbirth while peripheral venous blood was collected a few hours after delivery. According to the article, the neonatal period is critical to the wellbeing of neonates because of the high risk of infection involved. Neonatal sepsis is a bloodstream infection that causes more than 3 million deaths annually (Meena et al. 264). It is divided into two types namely early-onset neonatal sepsis and late-onset neonatal sepsis (Meena et al. 264). Early detection prevents unnecessary deaths because infected babies are treated using antibiotic therapy.
The researchers conducted an analytical study of 40 neonates for six months. Samples were collected from mothers during and after delivery. Newborns were checked for the septic screen, fever, hypotension, apnea, shock, abdominal distension, lethargy, retractions, and other health complications (Meena et al. 264). Newborns who exhibited two or more abnormalities were subjected to antibiotic therapy. According to the findings of the study, 11 babies tested positive for sepsis, all tested negative for cord blood CRP, three tested positive in UCBC, and one tested positive in PVBC (Meena et al. 264). The most common risk factors for sepsis include preterm delivery, regular vaginal examinations, untimely membrane rapture, and extended membrane rapture (Meena et al. 264). The study also found out that male babies are more susceptible to sepsis than female babies.
Diagnosis of sepsis in neonates is dependent on successful separation of infective organisms on blood culture. The choice of antibiotic therapy chosen for babies that test positive for sepsis depends on the resistance of the isolated agent (Meena et al. 265). The authors argue that an organism is associated with sepsis if it is repeatedly isolated on different blood cultures. Culture positivity is more common among neonates with several risk factors than in neonates with a single risk factor. Risk factors for EONS include low birth weight, maternal fever, untimely membrane rapture, and regular vaginal examinations (Meena et al. 265). The article notes that several studies have demonstrated that UCBC is more effective than PVBC because of its high sensitivity and specificity (Meena et al. 266). The authors cite several studies that validate the findings of their study. The results prove that umbilical cord blood cultures are better for the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis than peripheral venous blood cultures. UCBCs is effective in the diagnosis of early-onset neonatal sepsis in high-risk newborns. However, great caution should be practiced during blood collection to avoid sample contamination, which can compromise the outcome. There is a high risk of contamination when collecting cord venous blood than when collecting peripheral venous blood. UVBC gives more accurate results because of the large sample volumes used during diagnosis (Meena et al. 266). Insufficient samples of PVBC can give erroneous results because of low bacteria count. The findings of the study have great implications for research, policy, and practice because they prove that UCBC is an effective and reliable diagnostic test for early-onset neonatal sepsis.
References
Meena, Jothi, Marie Victor Pravin Charles, Arunava Ali, Siva Ramakrishnan, Seetesh Gosh, and Kunigal Seetha. “Utility of Cord Blood Culture in Early Onset Neonatal Sepsis.” Australasian Medical Journal 8.8 (2015): 263-267. Print.