Article Sidebar
Published:
Jun 13, 2017Article Details
Copyright remains in the Author’s name. The work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution - Noncommercial Works License. Authors are required to complete and sign an Author Agreement form that outlines Author and Publisher rights and terms of publication. The Agreement form should be uploaded along with other submissions files and any submission will be considered incomplete without it [forthcoming].
Material submitted for publication in the SAMJ is accepted provided it has not been published or submitted for publication elsewhere. Please inform the editorial team if the main findings of your paper have been presented at a conference and published in abstract form, to avoid copyright infringement. The SAMJ does not hold itself responsible for statements made by the authors.
Previously published images
If an image/figure has been previously published, permission to reproduce or alter it must be obtained by the authors from the original publisher and the figure legend must give full credit to the original source. This credit should be accompanied by a letter indicating that permission to reproduce the image has been granted to the author/s. This letter should be uploaded as a supplementary file during submission.
Main Article Content
Birth asphyxia - Presenting the case for' A stitch in time'
Abstract
Design. Retrospective, descriptiv.e study.
Setting. Neonatal nursery and intensive care unit, Johannesburg Hospital.
Methods. Maternal and mionatal records were reviewed for 48 babies weighing less than 1 800 g born between 1 January and 31 December 1997 with birth asphyxia. Outcome after discharge was determined from the neonatal follow-up notes until 31 March 1998.
Results. Mortality in the group of birth-asphyxiated babies was 12.5%. The birth asphyxia rate was 6/1 000 live births, and the CP rate in the study group was 1.15/1 000 live births. The CS rate for the group was 29%, with an overall CS rate at the hospital of 20.5%. In 22 cases (46%) the cause of birth asphyxia was considered to have been preventable.
Conclusion. The cr rate is considerably higher than that quoted for developed countries, and a significant number of cases of birth asphyxia in the study were preventable. In the face of the high birth asphyxia and cr rates, the CS rate appears to be inappropriately Iow. The CS rate should be audited in the context of the birth asphyxia and cr rates.
