Early onset of neonatal sepsis: analysis of the risk factors and incidence of bacterial isolates

Background: Neonatal septicemia still signifies acritical cause of mortality and mortality among infants. Onset of septicemia in neonates within 72 hours of life constitutes EOS. Early onset sepsis is attained during fetal life, caused by organisms prevalent in the maternal genital tract, infecting the neonate transplacentally or during passage through a colonized birth canal at the time of delivery or at the nursery. Methods: The present study was conducted in the department of Microbiology of Maharishi Markandeshwar institute of medical science and research, Mullana. Result: A total of 93(84.55%) having EOS were studied. Male: female ratio was 2.03:1. Eleven (12.5%) were home delivery. Low birth weight (69.31%) and pre term (25%) were common risk factors while difficulty feeding (42.04%), febrile (21.59%) and breathing difficulty (20.45%) were common clinical presentations. The common culture isolates were Klebsiella pneumoniae (21.59%), Staphylococcus aureus (21.59%) and Acinetobacter sp (19.31%). Conclusions: The low birth weight and pre term neonates were at an escalating risk of developing EOS. Klebsiella and Staphylococcus aureus were common pathogens.