Neonatology Flashcards
What is the newborn period defined as?
First 28 days of life
Key components of newborn medical history?
- Parents medical/genetic hx
- Maternal past obstretic hx
- Current antepartum and intrapartum obstretic hx
What is the Apgar score?
Infant evaluation at birth (0 is not good, 2 is good)
- HR
- Respiratory effort
- Muscle tone
- Response to catheter in nostril
- Color
Describe circumcision’s place in medicine
Elective procedure to be performed only in healthy, stable infants
Medical benefits of circumcision
- Prevention of phimosis, paraphimosis, balanoposthitis, UTI
- Later benefits: decreased penile cancer, STIs
Risks of circumcision
- Local infection
- Bleeding
- Removal of too much skin
- Urethral injury
What circumcision techniques are preferred?
Ones that allow visualization (Plastibell and Gomco clamps) preferred over blind techniques (Mogen clamp)
Mogen clamp use in circumcision
- Blind technique
- Not preferred
- Risk of glans amputation
Contraindications to circumcision
Infants with genital abnormalities (e.g. hypospadia)
How are newborns screened for hearing abnormalities?
Universal screening with auditory brainstem recording
General causes of pathologic unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia
- Overproduction of bilirubin (either hemolytic or nonhemolytic)
- Decreased rate of conjugation
What are the hemolytic causes of increased bilirubin production?
- Immune mediated (positive Coombs)
- Nonimmune (negative Coombs)
- Bacterial or viral sepsis
How to tell if the overproduction of bilirubin is hemolytic or nonhemolytic?
- Hemolytic causes will have an increased retic count
- Nonhemolytic causes will have normal retic count
Nonhemolytic causes of increased bilirubin production?
- Extravascular hemorrhage (cephalohematoma)
- Polycythemia
- Exaggerated enterohepatic circulation (bowel obstruction)
- Breast feeding associated jaundice (inadequate intake)
Main causes of decreased rate of bilirubin conjugation
- Crigler-Najjar syndrome (rare and severe)
- Gilbert syndrome (common, milder)
- Hypothyroidism (maybe?)
What is MC: Crigler-Najjar or Gilbert syndrome?
Gilbert syndrome
What do Crigler-Najjar and Gilbert syndromes cause?
Decreased rate of bilirubin conjugation
What is kernicterus? What is it characterized by?
Chronic bilirubin encephalopathy of the neonatal period
- Extrapyramidal movement disorder
- Gaze abnormality
- Auditory disturbances
What is considered neonatal hypoglycemia?
Blood glucose under 45 mg/dL
Clinical presentation of hypoglycemia in infants
- May be asymptomatic
- Lethargy, poor feeding, irritability, seizures
Which infants are at risk for hypoglycemia?
- Large for gestational age (LGA)
- Small for gestational age (SGA)
- Preterm
- Stressed
Clinical presentation of respiratory distress in a term infant
- Tachypnea (RR over 60)
- Intercostal and sternal retractions
- Expiratory grunting
- Cyanosis in room air
Describe neonatal murmurs
Heart murmurs are common in the first days of life and do not usually signify structural heart problems
What does a murmur present at birth indicate?
A valvular problem
What is recommended to identify congenital heart disease in newborns?
Pulse ox prior to discharge (anything under 95% at sea level needs echo)
MC birth injuries?
- Soft tissue bruising
- Fractures (clavicle, humerus, femur)
- Cervical plexus palsies
Features observed in fetal alcohol syndrome
- Short palpebral fissures
- Thin vermillion of upper lip
- Pre and postnatal growth deficiency
- Microcephaly
- Optic nerve hypoplasia
Why have multiple births increased in the US?
Assisted reproductive technologies
What type of twins are more at risk for twin-twin transfusion syndrome and congenital anomalies?
Monochorial (identical)
What is twin to twin transfusion syndrome?
- Disease of the placenta that affects identical twins
- Disproportionate blood supply
When can intrauterine growth restriction start in twins?
32 weeks
When can intrauterine growth restriction start in triplets?
26-27 weeks
Cerebral palsy is MC in what type of twins?
Monochorial (identical)
How does the length of gestation relate to multiple births?
More fetuses typically results in shorter gestation period
What are potential obstretic complications in multiple births?
- Polyhydramnios
- Pregnancy induced HTN
- PROM
- Abnormal fetal presentations
- Prolapsed umbilical cord
When asphyxia occurs at birth, what best predicts neurologic outcome (risk of CP)?
10 min Apgar score (better predictor than the 5 min score)
What is the MC cause of respiratory distress in preterm infants?
Hyaline membrane disease (RDS type 1)
Describe hyaline membrane disease (RDS type 1)
- Surfactant deficiency in alveoli (in production and inactivation due to protein leak)
- MC cause of resp distress in preterm infants
CXR findings of hyaline membrane disease
- Hypoaerated
- Air bronchograms
- Ground glass (reticulogranular)
Describe transient tachypnea of the newborn (RDS type 2) including how to treat
- AKA retained fetal lung fluid
- A/w precipitous or C-section without labor
- O2 support w/resolution usually in 12-24 hrs
What is bronchopulmonary dysplasia?
- Major sequelae of neonatal respiratory distress
- Used to be MC in premies that required prolonged mechanical ventilation
- Less severe now bc of surfactant, prenatal glucocorticoids, revised ventilation strategies
What is the pathology of bronchopulmonary dysplasia?
Inflammation, hypercellularity then fibrosis
Risk factors for bronchopulmonary dysplasia
- Oxygen required over 28 days
- History of PPV or CPAP
- Premature gestational age
What reduces the risk of bronchopulmonary dysplasia in newborns?
Early use of surfactant
Signs of PDA?
- Hyperdynamic precordium
- Widened pulse pressure
- Hypotension
When does PDA usually present in a newborn?
Days 3-7 as the respiratory distress from hyaline membrane disease (HMD) is improving
Treatment of PDA
- Medical ligation (initially effective in 2/3 pts, indomethacin)
- Surgical ligation if indomethacin fails (mortality of 1-10%)
What is the MC acquired GI emergency in the newborn?
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)
Risk factors for NEC
- Preterm infants
- Full term infants with polycythemia, congenital heart disease, birth asphyxia
Signs of NEC
- Feeding intolerance w/gastric residuals
- Vomiting
- Bloody stools
- Abd distention/tenderness
- Pneumatosis intestinalis on KUB
Symptoms of anemia in infants
- Poor feeding
- Lethargy
- Tachycardia
- Poor weight gain
- Periodic breathing (?)
What to know about treatment of an asymptomatic infant with low hematocrit?
Transfusion is NOT indicated
Clinical presentation of intraventricular hemorrhages in infants?
- Small bleeds can be asymp
- Larger cause hypotension, metabolic acidosis, altered neuro status
Periventricular-intraventricular hemorrhage occurs almost exclusively in _____
Premature infants (20-30% in infants under 31 weeks EGA and under 1500 g)
Describe an intraventricular hemorrhage
Ischemia with reperfusion injury to the capillaries in the germinal matrix in the immediate perinatal period
CNS complications a/w an intraventricular hemorrhage are MC in which pts?
Preterm infants exposed antenatally to intrauterine infection
Describe retinopathy of prematurity (ROP)
Occurs only in the incompletely vascularized premature retina