INFECTIONS IN NEONATOLOGY

[Date of last update: Luglio 2021]

Mortality within the first month of life has always been a critical element, both for recurrent infections and for the lack of suitable assistance for childbirth [1].  

Today, neonatal infections still represent an important cause of morbidity and mortality, especially if we consider low-weight preterm births, who may also have genetic or congenital pathologies [2].  The risk factors are many and it must be considered the innumerable interactions between the pathogenic microorganisms and the defense mechanisms of the newborn, the newborn clinical deterioration and the invasive procedures and devices for clinical care management, which paradoxically contribute to increasing the infectious risk [2].  Finally, the increasingly massive prescription of antibiotics in neonatal intensive care eases the spread of multi-resistant microorganisms [3].