Background

Neonatal septicemia is defined as infection in the first 28 days of life. Early–onset neonatal septicemia and late–onset neonatal septicemia are defined as illnesses appearing from birth to three days and from four to twenty–eight days postnatally, respectively. Neonatal sepsis is the third leading cause of neonatal mortality and a major public health problem, especially in developing countries. Although recent medical advances have improved neonatal care, many challenges remain in the diagnosis and management of neonatal infections. The diagnosis of neonatal sepsis is complicated by the frequent presence of non–infectious conditions that resemble sepsis, especially in preterm infants, and by the absence of optimal diagnostic tests. Since neonatal sepsis is a high–risk disease, especially in preterm infants, clinicians are compelled to empirically administer antibiotics to infants with risk factors and/or signs of suspected sepsis. Unfortunately, both broad–spectrum antibiotics and prolonged treatment with empirical antibiotics are associated with adverse outcomes and increase antimicrobial resistance rates. Given the high incidence and mortality of sepsis in preterm infants and its long–term consequences on growth and development, efforts to reduce the rates of infection in this vulnerable population are one of the most important interventions in neonatal care. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the incidence of neonatal sepsis and characterize the microbiological pattern of neonatal sepsis and the antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates to evaluate the empirical antibiotic used in neonatal units of IMS & SUM Hospital hospitals in eastern odisha region.

Methods–This was a hospital based retrospective study conducted at a tertiary care hospital IMS & SUM HOSPITAL the capital city of odisha, from Mar 2017 to April 2018. In this Retrospective hospital based study required tests and other required were noted from the diagnosed infants of neonatal septicemia.

Results– A total of 86 neonatal septicaemia infants were enrolled. Among them, 74 cases were grouped into the sepsis and 12cases diagnosed as probable sepsis were taken. The most common cultured bacterium from their blood was klebsiella pneumonia30(34.88%) followedby Escherichia coli 16(18.60%) in both early onset and late onset septicaemia. There was no significant difference in the babies’ birth weight, gestational age, modes of delivery, gender between the two groups regarding as a risk factor for sepsis. Other organism less commonly involves are CONS in 11%,Pseudomonas aeruginosa  in 5.40% in both groups. Acinetobacter species (3%) was the Gram–negative organism which is more common in early onset septicaemia.

Conclusions. The result of our study reveals that theKlebsiellapneumonia,E.coli,CoNS  andAcinetobacter sp. are the most common etiological agents of neonatal septicemia. In particular, since rate of Klebsiellapneumonia,E.coli causing sepsis is alarming in both early and late onset septicaemia. Appropriate measure should be taken care to curb the excess burden of these infectionsin this region.