Incidence of Hospital-Acquired Infections in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Gondar, Ethiopia: A Prospective Follow-Up Study

Abstract

Background: Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) in neonates are common problems with significant effect on neonatal morbidity and mortality with variable incidence rates worldwide. Incidence rates of hospital-acquired infections in neonates are affected by different factors. However, little is known about the incidence and major contributors in Ethiopia, which was the main aim of our study.

Methods: A prospective follow-up study was conducted to assess the incidence and associated factors of hospital-acquired infections in neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit(NICU) of the University of Gondar Hospital from September 1st, 2023, to February 29th, 2024. All neonates admitted to the NICU and stayed for >48 hours were included in the study. Systematic random sampling technique was applied to select study participants. Both bivariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were applied to identify associated factors of HAIs and P<=0.05 was considered statistically significant for association.

Results: A total of 247 neonates were followed for 2145 patient days and incidence rate of hospital-acquired infection was found to be 18.2 (95% CI: 11.3–20.3) per 1000 neonatal days of follow-up with the overall cumulative incidence 15.8%. Neonates who stayed longer than 7 days (p = 0.041), used CPAP (p = 0.003), and urinary catheter (p = 0.001) were found to have significant associations with HAIs.

Conclusion: The incidence of hospital-acquired infections was significantly high and the presence of invasive medical devices and longer stays in the hospital were significantly associated with a risk of HAI in our NICU.