Neonatal medicine Flashcards
What is necrotising enterocolitis?
Necrotising enterocolitis (NEC) is a serious illness in which tissues in the intestine (gut) become inflamed and start to die
What are the symptoms of necrotising enterocoloitis?
- Feeding intolerance
- Blood + mucus stools
- Vomiting bile-stained fluid
- Abdominal distension which can quickly progress to abdominal discolouration, perforation and peritonitis.
- Hypotension
- Hypothermina
- Jaundice
How is necrotising enterocolitis diagnosed?
Abdominal X-ray
- Pneumatosis intestinalis - intramural gas
- Bowel wall thickening, persistent bowel loops that are filled with gas
- Air both inside and outside of the bowel wall (Rigler sign)
- Air outlining the falciform ligament (football sign)
What is the treatment for necrotising enterocolitis?
-
Broad spectrum antibiotics
- Penicillin, gentamicin and metronidazole
- IV feeds
- NG tube
- Laparotomy
How can necrotising enterocolitis be prevented?
Erythromycin
Why is vitamin K given to babies after birth?
To prevent haemorrhagic disease of the newborn
How is vitamin K delivered to a baby after birth?
one off IM injection
Phytonadione
What is haemorrhagic disease of the newborn?
Hemorrhagic disease of the newborn is a rare bleeding problem that can occur after birth.
How is haemorrhagic disease of the newborn cateogrised?
- Early onset occurs within 24 hours of birth
- Classic onset occurs within two to seven days
- Late onset occurs within two weeks to six months
What are the symptoms of haemorrhagic disease of the newborn?
Warning bleeds, which may seem insignificant
Low weight for your baby’s age
Slow increase in weight
What babies are at risk of developing haemorrhagic disease of the newborn?
-
Antiseizure drugs that interfere with vitamin K metabolism
Such as phenytoin, phenobarbital, caramezepine, or primidone -
Blood thinning medications
Such as warfarin (Coumadin) or aspirin -
Antibiotics
Such as cephalosporins -
Antituberculosis medications
Such as rifampin and isoniazid
How is haemorrhagic disease of the newborn diagnosed?
Blood clotting tests
What are the steps in newborn resusitation?
1) Dry baby and maintain temperature
2) Assess tone, respiratory rate, heart rate
3) If gasping or not breathing give 5 inflation breaths*
4) Reassess (chest movements)
5) If the heart rate is not improving and <60bpm start compressions and ventilation breaths at a rate of 3:1
When does each newborn reflex stop?
-
Stepping
- 2 months of age
-
Moro
- 3-4 months of age
-
Rooting
- 4 months of age
-
Grasp
- 4-5 months of age
What is the definition of hypoglycaemia?
There is no agreed definition of neonatal hypoglycaemia but a figure of < 2.6 mmol/L is used in many guidelines.
What is the cause of neonatal hypoglycaemia?
- Preterm birth (< 37 weeks)
- Maternal diabetes mellitus
- IUGR
- Hypothermia
- Neonatal sepsis
- Inborn errors of metabolism
- Nesidioblastosis
- Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome
What are the features of neonatal hypoglycaemia?
May be asymptomatic
Autonomic (hypoglycaemia → changes in neural sympathetic discharge)‘Jitteriness’
Irritable
Tachypnoea
Pallor
Neuroglycopenic
Poor feeding/sucking
Weak cry
Drowsy
Hypotonia
Seizures
Other features may include
Apnoea
Hypothermia
What is the management of hypoglycaemia?
Asymptomatic
- Encourage normal feeding (breast or bottle)
- Monitor blood glucose
Symptomatic or very low blood glucose
- Admit to the neonatal unit
- Intravenous infusion of 10% dextrose
What are the steps for newborn resusitation?
- Following birth, the first step is to dry the baby maintain temperature and start the clock
- Following this you assess tone breathing and heart rate.
- If gasping or not breathing, you open the airway to give 5 inflation breaths.
- You then reassess for an increase in the heart rate. If there is no increase in the heart rate you ensure the inflation breaths you are giving are adequate by checking chest movement.
- If the chest is not moving you assume the inflation breaths are inadequate and recheck head position, consider 2-person airway control and other manoeuvers and repeat inflation breaths then look for a response.
- If the chest is moving but the heart rate is still undetectable or less than 60 beats per minute you start chest compressions at a ratio of 3 compressions to 1 inflation breath (3:1).
- You reassess heart rate every 30 seconds, and if it is still undetectable or very slow, you consider IV access and drugs.
What is gastroschisis?
Gastroschisis describes a congenital defect in the anterior abdominal wall just lateral to the umbilical cord
What is the management of gastroschisis?
Vaginal delivery may be attempted
Newborns should go to theatre as soon as possible after delivery, e.g. within 4 hours
What is exomphalos (omphalocoele)?
Abdominal contents protrude through the anterior abdominal wall but are covered in an amniotic sac formed by amniotic membrane and peritoneum
What are the disease associations with exomphalos (omphalocoele)?
- Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome
- Down’s syndrome
- Cardiac and kidney malformations
What is the management for exomphalos (omphalocoele)?
Caesarean section is indicated to reduce the risk of sac rupture
A staged repair may be undertaken as primary closure may be difficult due to lack of space/high intra-abdominal pressure
WHAT ARE THE CAUSES OF JAUNDICE IN THE FIRST 24 HOURS AFTER BIRTH?
Rhesus haemolytic disease
ABO haemolytic disease
Hereditary spherocytosis
Glucose-6-phosphodehydrogenase
What are the clinical features of neonatal jaundice?
Failure to thrive
Poor feeding
Other features of the underlying aetiology
What are the long term causes of jaundice in a newborn?
- Biliary atresia
- Hypothyroidism
- Galactosaemia
- Urinary tract infection
- Breast milk jaundice
- Congenital infections e.g. CMV, toxoplasmosis
What are the tests you can do for neonatal jaundice?
Conjugated and unconjugated bilirubin: the most important test as a raised conjugated bilirubin could indicate biliary atresia which requires urgent surgical intervention
direct antiglobulin test (Coombs’ test)
TFTs
FBC and blood film
urine for MC&S and reducing sugars
U&Es and LFTs
What is the management for nenonatal jaundice?
- Phototherapy
- Echange therapy
What are the complications of neonatal jaundice?
Kernicterus, with subsequent choreathetosis evolving in the second year of life
- Opisthotonus
- Spasticity
- Convulsions
- Mental retardation
- Deafness
WHAT IS KERNICTERUS?
Kernicterus is a condition associated with high levels of bilirubin in the blood in early life that may present with severe neurological symptoms.
What are risk factors for kernicterus?
- Risk factors, in addition to the obvious factor of neonatal hyperbilirubinaemia, include:
- Occurrence in the first two weeks of life
- Prematurity
- Factors which increase bilirubin displacement from albumin, such as acidosis, infection, hypoalbuminaemia, hypoxia, etc.
- Conditions which lead to massive haemolysis, in particular haemolytic disease of the newborn
When should kernictus be suspected in a newborn?
Hyperbilirubinaemia
- A serum bilirubin level greater than 340 micromol/litre in babies with a gestational age of 37 weeks or more
- A rapidly rising bilirubin level of greater than 8.5 micromol/litre per hour
- Clinical features of acute bilirubin encephalopathy
What are the clinical features of kernicterus?
Acute features, noted from day 3 to day ten include:
- Lethargy
- Poor feeding
- Hypotonia,
- Opisthotonus
- Convulsions
Intermediate features include:
- Hypotonia
- Developmental delay
Long term features, noted at 18 months, include:
- Athetoid cerebral palsy
- High frequency hearing loss
What is an umbilical granuloma?
An umbilical granuloma is an overgrowth of tissue which occurs during the healing process of the umbilicus. It is most common in the first few weeks of life.
What are the features of umbilical granuloma?
On examination, a small, red growth of tissue is seen in the centre of the umbilicus. It is usually wet and leaks small amounts of clear or yellow fluid.
What is the treatment of an umbilical granuloma?
It is treated by regular application of salt to the wound, if this does not help then the granuloma can be cauterised with silver nitrate.
What are the commonest variants of cleft lip?
Isolated cleft lip (15%)
Isolated cleft palate (40%)
Combined cleft lip and palate (45%)
What is the pathophyisology/causes of cleft lip?
- Polygenic inheritance
- Maternal antiepileptic use increases risk
- Cleft lip results from failure of the fronto-nasal and maxillary processes to fuse
- Cleft palate results from failure of the palatine processes and the nasal septum to fuse
What are the problems of clept palate?
Feeding
Orthodontic devices may be helpful
Speech
With speech therapy 75% of children develop normal speech
Increased risk of otitis media for cleft palate babies
What is the management of cleft lip and cleft palate?
Cleft lip is repaired earlier than cleft palate, with practices varying from repair in the first week of life to three months
Cleft palates are typically repaired between 6-12 months of age
What is respiratory distress syndrome?
A baby’s lungs are not fully developed and cannot provide enough oxygen, causing breathing difficulties
It usually affects premature babies
It is caused by insufficient surfactant production and structural immaturity of the lungs
What are the risk factors for respiratory distress syndrome?
Premature birth
Male sex
Diabetic mothers
Caesarean section
Second born of premature twins
What are the symptoms of respiratory distress syndrome?
- Tachypnoea
- Intercostal recession
- Expiratory grunting
- Cyanosis