Objective: To determine the etiology, prevalence and outcomes of respiratory distress in neonates hospitalized in the SNCU/NICU in VSSIMSAR Hospital, Burla.

Methods: 5760 neonates, both inborn and out born, admitted with respiratory distress were considered, out of which 417 were enrolled in the study after meeting inclusion and exclusion criteria. The required demographic informations were extracted from patients’ dossiers. Examinations and investigations were carried out.

Study Design: Hospital based prospective observational study.

Statistical Analysis: The descriptive data were analysed using SPSS v 25.0 (IBM, New York) software.

Result: Out of the 417 cases enrolled in the study with male to female ratio of 1.66:1, the prevalence of respiratory distress was found to be 13.81%. 55.2% of neonates were of term gestation and 40% were preterm. Most common cause of respiratory distress was found to be HIE II:147 (35.3%), followed by RDS:135 (32.4%), Sepsis: 68 (16.3%), HIE III:36 (8.6%), MAS:16 (3.8%) and HIE I:15 (3.6%).281 (67.4%)were discharged, death occurred in 113 (27.1%)cases while 12 (2.9%) of them were referred to higher centre and 11(2.6%)cases went LAMA. Out of the 113 deaths, 40 (35.4%) were preterm, 32 (28.3%) were HIE III, 21 (18.5%) were HIE II and 20 (17.8%) were sepsis.

Conclusion: It was found that HIE II was the most common cause of respiratory distress, followed by RDS. Prematurity associated with RDS was most common cause of mortality followed by HIE and sepsis. Many of the etiologies for respiratory distress are preventable. Adequate follow-up of pregnancy and labor for early detection of risk factors, early referral to higher centre and timely intervention may improve the outcome of neonatal respiratory distress.

Keywords: Neonates, Respiratory distress, Prematurity, HIE.

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Dr Goutam V

Post Graduate Student, Department of Paediatrics, Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Burla, Sambalpur, Odisha