GASTRIC ASPIRATE: A SCREENING TOOL FOR DETECTION OF EARLY NEONATAL SEPSIS-A PROSPECTIVE STUDY IN TERTIARY CARE CENTRE, INDORE

Abstract

Background: Infections in early neonatal period are one of the important factors responsible for high  mortality and  morbidity in neonates in developing countries. Although it is being frequently observed by pediatricians in neonates, still insufficient relevant studies are documented.  The objective of the present study was to evaluate the utility of gastric aspirate cytology as a screening tool for neonatal sepsis, and to determine the polymorphonuclear leukocyte count present in smear of gastric aspirate and correlating it with blood culture proven sepsis.

Methods: The study was conducted on 100 neonates  suspected with septicemia in inborn patients in Index medical college hospital and research centre. Gastric aspirate sample was collected within 6 hours of birth for septic screening of neonates. All the collected data was statistically analysed by applying  Chi-square test using SPSS 2.0 software.

Results: Gastric aspirate cytology has sensitivity 0f 53.19% and specificity of 62.28% with positive predictive accuracy of 51.33% and negative predictive accuracy of 63.4%.The relationship between gastric aspirate cytology and maternal risk factors like PROM are found to be highly significant.

Conclusions: We conclude that gastric aspirate cytology in neonates is an excellent screening technique for neonatal sepsis added to a detailed perinatal history and clinical examination. The chances of positivity of gastric aspirate increase as the duration of rupture of membranes increased.

Keywords: Gastric aspirate cytology, Neonatal sepsis, Blood culture, Polymorphonuclear leukocytes.