title: Morbidity and mortality among very-low-birth-weight infants born to mothers with clinical chorioamnionitis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Controversy exists about the relationship between maternal inflammation and the development of different morbidities and mortality in the newborn. We aimed to establish the incidence of clinical chorioamnionitis in our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and its relation to morbidity and mortality among very-low-birth-weight infants.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was an observational study of a cohort of very-low-birth-weight neonates admitted to our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, between January 2008 and December 2012. Demographic characteristics and outcomes were analyzed and a comparison between exposed and non-exposed infants was carried out.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the study period, 451 very-low-birth-weight infants were admitted to our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and 31 (6.87%) were exposed to maternal clinical chorioamnionitis. The incidence was higher at lower gestational ages: 13.2% (23-26 weeks), 8.1% (27-30 weeks), and 2.6% (31-34 weeks) (p = 0.022). After correcting by gestational age and birth weight, early-onset neonatal sepsis (adjusted relative risk = 6.13; 95% confidence interval = 1.67-22.58; p = 0.006) and periventricular leukomalacia (adjusted relative risk = 24.62; 95% confidence interval = 1.87-324.28; p = 0.015) were significantly associated with maternal clinical chorioamnionitis. There were no differences in mortality or in survival without major morbidity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Clinical chorioamnionitis confers an increased risk of early-onset neonatal sepsis and periventricular leukomalacia to exposed very-low-birth-weight infants.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neonatología, Hospital Universitario Materno Infantil de Las Palmas, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. Electronic address: fgarciamu@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Fermín
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: García-Muñoz Rodrigo
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neonatología, Hospital Universitario Materno Infantil de Las Palmas, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: Gloria M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Galán Henríquez
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Neonatología, Hospital Universitario Materno Infantil de Las Palmas, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
authors.forename: Cristina Gómez
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Ospina
mesh_terms: D002821:Chorioamnionitis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007232:Infant, Newborn, Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D007969:Leukomalacia, Periventricular / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018805:Sepsis / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: clinical chorioamnionitis; early-onset neonatal sepsis; mortality; newborn; outcome; periventricular leukomalacia