Number of Seizures and Associated Factors Among Neonates with Perinatal Asphyxia Admitted to Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Selected Comprehensive Specialized Hospitals of Amhara Region, Northwest Ethiopia,2023. A Poisson Regression Analysis

Background: Seizure is an occurrence of sudden, paroxysmal, abnormal alteration in electrographic activity at any point from birth to the end of the neonatal period. However, little is known about the number of seizures and the associated factors in the study area. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the number of seizures and associated factors in neonates admitted with birth asphyxia to the neonatal intensive care unit in the Northwest Amhara Region Comprehensive Specialized Hospitals, Northwest Ethiopia, in 2023. Methods: A multicenter institution-based retrospective follow-up study was conducted among 423 neonates who had a follow-up visit at Comprehensive Specialized Hospitals of Northwest Ethiopia from October 1, 2019, to January 30, 2023. by reviewing the charts of neonates with asphyxia registered from October 01, 2019, to January 30, 2023. A simple random sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data were extracted using an abstraction sheet, entered into EPidata version 4.6.0.0, and exported to STATA version 14 for analysis. A negative binomial Poisson regression model was best fitted for both bi-variable and multivariable analyses. Results: The mean number of seizures was 5.4515 (95% CI], 5.164– 5.738) per 28-day follow-up period. Hypoglycemia (AIRR = 1.17, 95% CI = (1.06 1.28), intraventricular hemorrhage (AIRR = 1.16, 95% CI = 1.16 (1.06 1.26), stage two hypoxic-ischemic injury (AIRR=11,49, 95% CI =5.9 22.23), stage three hypoxic-ischemic injury (AIRR = 13.22, 95% CI = (6.80 25.68) were significant. Conclusions and Recommendations: The current study showed that the mean number of seizures in newborns with perinatal asphyxia was higher than that in newborns without perinatal asphyxia: Hypoglycemia, intraventricular hemorrhage, and hypoxic-ischemic injury in the second and third stages were significant factors in the occurrence of seizures.