Hospital-based case–control study of risk factors of early neonatal mortality in the Gaza Strip

Abstract

Background: Early neonatal death is an essential epidemiological indicator of maternal and child health. Aims: To identify risk factors for early neonatal deaths in the Gaza Strip. Methods: This was a hospital-based case–control study. We included 132 women with neonatal deaths recorded from January to September 2018. The control group comprised 264 women who were selected using systematic random sampling and gave birth to live newborns at the time of the data collection. Results: The controls who had no history of neonatal death or still birth were less likely to have an early neonatal death compared with women who did have such a history. The controls who did not have meconium aspiration syndrome or amniotic fluid complications were less likely to have an early neonatal death compared with women who did experience these complications during delivery. The controls who had a singleton birth outcome were less likely to have an early neonatal death compared with women who had multiple births. Conclusion: It is important to establish intervention programmes to provide preconception care, improve the quality of intrapartum and postnatal care, provide high-quality health education, and improve the quality of care provided within neonatal intensive care units.