Mortality in infants discharged from a neonatal intensive care unit
C. J. Sells, T. E. Neff, F. C. Bennett and N. M. Robinson
In a three-year period, 3.8% (43) of 1,123 infants discharged from one
neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) subsequently died, the vast majority
before 1 year of age. Sudden infant death syndrome was responsible for 28%
of the deaths, congenital heart disease for 25% of the deaths, chronic lung
disease for 16%, and trauma, infections, and chromosomal disorders each
accounted for 5% of the deaths. Postdischarge death rates in the three-year
study period remained stable, while infant mortality in the NICU decreased
from 26.5% to 16.3%. This study suggests that decreasing mortality among
infants treated in NICUs is not necessarily reflected in improved
postdischarge death rates and that the vast majority of deaths in these
infants are currently not preventable.
