Factors associated with infant death after apparent life-threatening event (ALTE)

Abstract

To detect factors associated with greater risk of death in infants after an apparent life-threatening event (ALTE). This cross-sectional, retrospective, descriptive and analytic study evaluated infants younger than 12 months who had a sudden event of cyanosis, pallor, hypotonia or apnea and were seen in the emergency department of a tertiary university hospital. Forward stepwise logistic regression (Wald) was used to calculate and adjust odds ratios to evaluate associations. Mean age of the 145 patients included in the study was 105 days (median = 65 days). Eleven (7.6%) died, and their mean age was 189 days (median = 218 days). Mean age of survivors was 98 days (median = 62 days) (p = 0.003). Activity before the event, prematurity and number of events were not associated with death. A significant association was found with pallor. Of the 11 infants, 3 had spontaneous resolution of ALTE, whereas 8 patients [27.6%; p < 0.001; OR = 14.3 (95%CI 3.51-58.3)] did not. The associations with respiratory or cardiovascular disease were also significant. In multivariate analysis, immediate spontaneous resolution [p = 0.015; OR = 6.06 (95%CI 1.02-35.94)] and diagnosis of cardiovascular disease [p = 0.047; OR = 164.27 (95%CI 7.34-3.673.78)] remained statistically significant. Infants who experienced an ALTE had a higher risk of subsequent death when their age was greater than 6 months and the event had a long duration, particularly when ALTE was associated with cardiovascular disease.