A two-year retrospective study of the neonatal emergency transport service in Northeast Italy

Abstract

Background Some newborns require acute transport to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) due to unpredicted or unpredictable reasons. Objective To describe the activity of the Neonatal Emergency Transport Service (NETS) in Northeast Italy. Methods An observational retrospective study was performed between 1 January 2018, and 31 December , 2019. Results A total of 133 transports were collected, with a neonatal transport index of 1.4%. Infants ≤2500 grams were more frequently transferred by NETS than those in the normal group (n = 34/563, 6.0% vs. n = 99/8,437, 1.2%; p < .001). The incidence of preterm birth among transferred newborns was 42/133 (31.6%). For the newborns with >2500 grams, there was a low incidence of a cesarean birth compared to vaginal delivery (23.2% versus 63.5%; p = .001), while the percentages were reversed in the group of infants ≤2500 grams (67.7% versus 20.6%) (p = .001). Infant stabilization time was higher in the underweight group compared to those weighed >2500 grams (31.5 versus 23.0 min; p < .001), as well as the median length of stay in NICU (18.0 versus 8.0 days, respectively, p < .001). The group of infants ≤2500 grams received more intravenous therapy (47.1% vs. 26.2%) and invasive ventilation (26.5% vs. 8.1%), compared to the group of infants who weighed >2500 grams. Conclusions This study described a local reality by showing the characteristics of the neonatal transports that took place in a metropolitan area in Northeast Italy. Wider database is necessary to achieve a better knowledge in the field of perinatal outcomes.