Variability of medical criteria for indicating lumbar puncture in neonatal care units
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61651/rped.2019v71n1p09-13Keywords:
Spinal Puncture, Meningitis, Neonatal SepsisAbstract
Lumbar puncture (LP) is the only procedure to diagnose neonatal meningitis. Probable or confirmed neonatal sepsis is the major risk condition for developing meningitis.
Objective: To analyze the variation of lumbar puncture indications in the Intensive Care Units and Neonatal Intermediate Care Units from the different regions of Peru.
Materials and Methods: A survey was used to evaluate the opinion of doctors who work in the Intensive Care Units and Neonatal Intermediate Care Units. Results: Fifty two percent (82/159) were neonatologists and 48.4% (77/159) pediatricians, 65.4% (104/159) were older than 40 years, 74% (61/82) of neonatologists and 27% (21/77) of pediatricians work in Lima. 73% (116/159) of doctors indicated they would perform LP in suspected sepsis, 76.8% (63/82) of neonatologists would indicate LP as well as 68.8% (53/77) of pediatricians. Neonatologists tend to perform more puncture in confirmed sepsis 62.2% (51/82) and positive blood culture 73.2% (60/82) than pediatricians. Other indications and attitudes were variable.
Conclusions: It observed lack of knowledge and variability of the criteria of the doctors to indicate the lumbar puncture in neonates with suspected or risk of meningitis. Neonatologists more frequently identified the indication in confirmed sepsis and positive blood culture.
Downloads
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors will retain the copyright and grant the right to publish their work in the journal while allowing third parties to share it under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
Articles are published under a Creative Commons license that allows sharing and adaptation with appropriate credit. CC BY 4.0 license. Available in English at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Authors may use other information disclosure formats as long as the initial publication in the journal is cited. The dissemination of the work through the Internet is recommended to increase citations and promote academic exchanges.
The published content does not necessarily reflect the specific point of view of the journal, and the authors assume full responsibility for the content of their article.
