LaMar Kim, Dowling Donna A
Development and Research at Banner Desert Medical Center, Mesa, AZ 85202, USA.
J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. 2006 Mar-Apr;35(2):193-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00025.x.
To describe the incidence of infection in a group of cobedded preterm twin infants and compare it to the incidence of infection in a cohort of preterm twin infants cared for in the same institution prior to the onset of cobedding.
Retrospective descriptive design.
Tertiary, referral neonatal intensive-care unit in the Midwest.
Preterm twin infants between 23 and 35 weeks gestational age.
Data from 1997 to 2001 (cobedding) compared to data from 1992 to 1996 (no cobedding).
Infection as evidenced by positive blood, cerebrospinal fluid, or urine culture or radiographic evidence of pneumonia or necrotizing enterocolitis.
Independent samples t test found the cobedded and non-cobedded infants to be homogenous in demographic data. A 2-way analysis of variance demonstrated no significant effects for cobedded infants on number of sepsis evaluations or number of positive blood cultures. There was a statistically significant difference for number of positive blood cultures at discharge reflecting the increased number of positive blood cultures in the non-cobedded infants. Finally, there were no statistically significant differences found between cobedded and non-cobedded for the presence of pneumonia or necrotizing enterocolitis.
Cobedding of preterm twins cared for in the intensive-care nursery was not associated with an increased incidence of infection. Prospective studies are needed on cobedding before a change in practice is implemented.
