The Relationship between Vitamin D Levels and Clinical Outcomes of Neonatal Sepsis in Haji Adam Malik Hospital Medan, Indonesia

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D deficiency in neonates is associated with neonatal sepsis incidence. It is also significantly correlated to the increased risk in the outcomes of sepsis, such as mortality, length of hospital stay, and use of ventilatory support. AIM: The aim of the study is to observe the relationship between Vitamin D levels and clinical outcomes of sepsis in the neonatal unit. METHODS: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted to neonates in neonatology Haji Adam Malik hospital from June 2019 to February 2020. A Chi-square test was carried out to observe the relationship between Vitamin D levels and sepsis outcomes, and a Mann-Whitney test was done to assess the significance between Vitamin D levels and length of hospital stay. RESULTS: Among 41 full-term and pre-term neonates, there were 75.6% (31/41) neonates with Vitamin D deficiency, while 24.4% (10/41) had normal Vitamin D levels and did not suffer from deficiency. The relationship of Vitamin D levels with mortality, use of ventilatory support, length of stay, and blood culture was p = 0.660 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.810–1.677), p = 0.013 (p < 0.05), p = 0.940 (median 21 days), and p =0.712 (95% CI = 0.623–1.353), respectively. CONCLUSION: Vitamin D deficiency had a significant relationship with ventilatory support requirement as one of the sepsis outcomes in neonates.