Factors Associated With Neonatal Deaths in the Regional Hospital of Fada N'Gourma, Eastern Region, Burkina Faso, 2021
- Maternal and child health
Background: Neonatal mortality remains a concern in the eastern region of Burkina Faso with 328 deaths in 2020 and 175 deaths by the end of July 2021. Of recorded deaths in July 2021, 101 (58%) came from the Fada N'Gourma Regional Hospital Centre (CHR). With an average of 3 neonatal deaths per week, CHR notified 7 neonatal deaths, which is unusual. We carried out an investigation to identify factors associated with these neonatal deaths.
Methods: We conducted a case-control study from August 4–October 9, 2021 in CHR. Cases were all deaths registered from January 1–July 31, 2021 and controls were newborns admitted on the same day as the case and discharged alive. A random selection of 2 controls for 1 case was made. We collected sociodemographic information for newborns and their mothers, gynecologic and obstetric data for mothers, and clinical characteristics for newborns by document review. We performed chi-square tests and calculated odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) to identify risk factors associated with neonatal deaths.
Results: We compared and analyzed 144 cases and 288 controls. Of the deaths, about 86% were from the Fada health district, nearly 10% from the Bogandé health district and about 4% from the Gayéri health district. The in-hospital neonatal mortality rate was around 18%. The main factors associated with neonatal mortality were having >5 pregnancies (OR=2.85; CI=1.77–4.58), <4 prenatal visits (OR=3.05; CI=1.98–4.69), low birth weight (OR=3.20; CI=2.08–4.94) and the presence of an underlying maternal pathology (OR=10.32; CI=8.76–13.02).
Conclusions: Our investigation showed that the high neonatal mortality at the Fada N'Gourma Regional Hospital is associated with several factors related to the care of mothers during pregnancy. We recommend improved maternal prenatal care and follow-up on pregnancy-related pathologies to reduce neonatal mortality.
Methods: We conducted a case-control study from August 4–October 9, 2021 in CHR. Cases were all deaths registered from January 1–July 31, 2021 and controls were newborns admitted on the same day as the case and discharged alive. A random selection of 2 controls for 1 case was made. We collected sociodemographic information for newborns and their mothers, gynecologic and obstetric data for mothers, and clinical characteristics for newborns by document review. We performed chi-square tests and calculated odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) to identify risk factors associated with neonatal deaths.
Results: We compared and analyzed 144 cases and 288 controls. Of the deaths, about 86% were from the Fada health district, nearly 10% from the Bogandé health district and about 4% from the Gayéri health district. The in-hospital neonatal mortality rate was around 18%. The main factors associated with neonatal mortality were having >5 pregnancies (OR=2.85; CI=1.77–4.58), <4 prenatal visits (OR=3.05; CI=1.98–4.69), low birth weight (OR=3.20; CI=2.08–4.94) and the presence of an underlying maternal pathology (OR=10.32; CI=8.76–13.02).
Conclusions: Our investigation showed that the high neonatal mortality at the Fada N'Gourma Regional Hospital is associated with several factors related to the care of mothers during pregnancy. We recommend improved maternal prenatal care and follow-up on pregnancy-related pathologies to reduce neonatal mortality.