Abstract
We studied the incidence of umbilical venous catheterization (UVC)-related infection
and pathogens in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in China. Patients were grouped
into <2000-g UVC or <2000-g non-UVC groups or ≥2001-g UVC or ≥2001-g non-UVC groups.
Blood culture and umbilical root skin swab culture were taken following UVC insertion
and extraction. UVCs were removed after 7 days and cultures of UVC tips were performed
then. A total of 516 patients were enrolled. The incidence of UVC-related septicemia
was 9.5%. The incidence of UVC-related septicemia per 1000 UVC days was 13.6. No significant
difference was noted between <2000-g UVC and <2000-g non-UVC groups and between ≥2001-g
UVC group and ≥2001-g non-UVC groups, in the number of positive blood cultures and
skin cultures, the percentage of catheter-related septicemia, the incidence of catheter-related
septicemia per 1000 catheter days, and the increase in the number of positive cultures
between two skin cultures following UVC insertion and extraction. The predominant
pathogen in all cultures was gram-positive pathogens. Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus was the most frequently noted pathogen. UVC did not increase the incidence of catheter-related
infection in the NICU. It is necessary to consider local pathogen spectrum when choosing
antibiotic therapy before specific culture results become available.
Keywords
newborn - umbilical vein - central line - infection - pathogen